Anything Could Happen
by nictaylor97
Summary: Proclaiming me as "Jailbait" was the worst thing to come out of his mouth. The nickname still lingered past my eighteenth birthday, and I was bitter. Edward Cullen was the most infuriating person I had ever met in my life, and it was quite possible that his sole purpose on this earth was to torture me. It was a slow, pleasurable kind of torture-not that I'd admit that out loud...
1. Shut Up and Drive

**Well, hello lovelies! Yes, I have officially started my next story. All The Right Moves is winding down, so I thought it was a good time to start posting this one. I have a few chapters written, and I promise the second one in a few days, since that's when things get a little more exciting. But ATRM will be priority until I hit that complete button.**

 **Anyway, new story, kinda OOC Edward. I think he's hot, though, so what are you gonna do? *shrugs* I will tell you right now, that he doesn't show up until next chapter, though.**

 **Alright, I'm done talking. See you at the bottom!**

* * *

 **Chapter One**

 **Shut Up and Drive**

 _August 26th, 2015_

 _8:14 am_

The trunk slams shut of my little car, filling me with a sense of finality. My dad shoots me a hesitant grin as he leans against the hunk of metal he had bought me for my graduation a few months ago. I hear the telltale sound of tires running over the gravel in front of the house I have lived in for the past eighteen years of my life. Well, eighteen years minus that three months that I lived with my mom and her new husband when they were in Arizona. I had quickly realized I didn't appreciate unbearable heat, so I promptly moved back with Charlie when the opportunity presented itself.

"Bella, are you ready for our road trip?" Alice asks in a sing-song voice. I look over my shoulder and see my pixie of a best friend and her mom unloading stuff from their car.

Alice Brandon barged her way into my life on our first day of kindergarten, all three and a half feet of her. I remembered being approached by this tiny girl with a squeaky but demanding voice and her spiky little pigtails. Not much has changed in the thirteen years we have known each other. She's still tiny, at a whopping five feet and ninety pounds, and she definitely still commands any room she is in. She is still as beautiful as ever, with her porcelain skin, dark hair cut into a messy pixie cut, and piercing blue eyes. The only real changes to her appearance since we were five are the stud in her nose and the hoop through her septum.

Alice and her mom, Lisa, come over and start filling the back seat of my car with Alice's things, since mine are currently occupying the trunk. Alice and I had both been accepted to the University of Massachusetts and we are now taking a road trip out there together instead of flying. I want to have my car on campus instead of having to rely on public transit, so my dad and her mom had agreed to us driving all the way out there from our small town of Forks, Washington. It was going to be a long drive between pit stops, sleeping, and Alice wanting to sightsee everywhere, but we were hoping to make it in about a week.

"You've got all the maps and the money?" Charlie asks. He has provided me with maps of all the states we are going through in case we aren't able to get cell service anywhere. He has also been setting money aside for me since I decided to attend Massachusetts so I'd have plenty of money for gas and food and motels on the way there. I had also been saving money from the job I had taken at the local grocery store. I'd been working there since my junior year of high school, so I have a good chunk of money to use until I can find a job in Boston.

"Yep, maps are in the glove compartment and money is in my purse," I confirm. "I've got everything, Dad."

"I'm just making sure, Bells," he says. He wraps his arm around my shoulders and pulls me into his side, his version of a hug. Charlie isn't one for physical affection, so it meant a lot when he actually hugged me.

"You guys should get going," Lisa says, finally closing the back door of my car. It has taken her and Alice a few minutes to get all of Alice's things in there. "You don't want to get stuck in traffic to start off your trip."

"Yeah, let's go, Bella," Alice agrees. She pulls her mom into a bone crushing hug, which Lisa returns with just as much ferocity. If you didn't know any better, Alice and her mom could pass for sisters with how similar they looked, and not to mention Lisa looks like she was in her twenties, not her late thirties.

Charlie surprisingly pulls me into a closer hug and presses his lips to the top of my head. I wrap my arms around his middle and try to suppress the tears I can feel welling up in my eyes. I had spent eight years with just my dad and now I have to say goodbye. I was going to the opposite side of the country and I probably won't see him until Christmas. We aren't exactly close, but Charlie is a good dad, and I was going to miss him.

"Call me if you need anything, Bells," he says, releasing me from his grip. I see his eyes were rimmed red, and I know he is holding back tears, too. This is the most emotion I have seen from him, aside from when the Seahawks won the Super Bowl last year.

"I will, dad. Love you." He smiles at me as he helps me into the car, closing the door after me when I am all the way inside.

Charlie and Lisa wave to us as I pull out of the driveway and onto the street. They stay in my rearview mirror all the way down the road until I turn the corner and can no longer see them.

}ACH{

 _11:42 am_

"Bella, can we stop soon? I'm hungry and my bladder is yelling at me," Alice says. She has her feet kicked up on the dashboard and the window down, her dark hair blowing back from her face. We have been on the road for a few hours, and we were somewhere in Oregon.

"Yeah, we'll get off at the next habitable exit," I tell her.

We have spent the last three hours singing along to the road trip playlist we had composed on Alice's iPod a few days ago. It consists of hundreds of songs ranging several decades and all of the genres. We are currently listening to some Taylor Swift, but our last song had been by Smashing Pumpkins. Anything goes when you're going to be on the road for several days.

I pull off the highway at the next exit and quickly find a McDonald's. I order our food while Alice dashes to the restroom. and we trade positions once she came back. We take our order to go and are back on the road within ten minutes of getting off it.

"Have you talked to Mike at all?" Alice asks once we are done eating. She kicks her feet back up on the dashboard as she awaits my answer.

"No?" I say, glancing at her like she's crazy. "I broke up with him, why would I talk to him?" Breaking up with someone usually means you don't want to talk to them or see them anymore, right?

"You're not sad about this at all? You guys went out for quite a while."

"I mean, I guess. But it was only six months," I say, shrugging my shoulder. "It's not like I had any real emotional investment in the guy. There's not even anything about him to really miss. He wasn't even that good in bed."

"You said you guys had fun," she argues, looking incredulous.

" _He_ had fun," I stress. "I told you, Mike was a virgin when we started dating. He didn't know any better. _I,_ however, just kinda went through the motions. I've definitely had better."

"Riley?" she asks, a knowing smirk on her face.

"Riley," I agree, nodding. We both chuckle together.

Riley Biers was a junior when I was a freshman at Forks High. Riley was one of the guys that all the girls wanted and all the guys wanted to be. He wasn't an athlete, but he was popular and what some would call a bad boy. He smoked cigarettes and had alcohol at all his parties. He got his motorcycle license soon after getting his normal license. He was the hottest guy at school, and he knew it. Somehow Riley took notice of me by the end of my freshman year, and we spent a lot of time together that summer. By the beginning of our sophomore and senior year, I was Riley's girl and everyone knew it. I lost my virginity to him by homecoming, and my sex life became quite active and adventurous. I had nothing to compare it to at the time, but now I knew Riley was the best I ever had, and no one since even held a candle to him. Riley was into some things that I didn't know about before we were talking, and it turned out that I was very much into them, too. And Alice had a press pass to all the juicy details.

When Riley graduated that year, we had broken up because he was going to school in New York and he didn't want a long distance relationship, much like I had done with Mike. I was pretty upset about the breakup, but I knew it was for the best, because what college student wants a relationship with a high school girl back in Podunk, Washington? Riley and I had cared about each other, and he was a really good boyfriend for that year, but the split had been pretty clean. We left each other in a good place, and I only thought about Riley with good memories.

After Riley, I had had a brief fling with a boy from the nearby reservation. Jake and I had known each other since we were kids, and it just kind of happened one day. Jake wasn't a virgin, but he wasn't the type of lover that I was used to, and I couldn't really get into it. Where Riley was demanding and controlling, Jake was willing to sit there as I took over. I was used to being handled with sure hands, and Jake was passive in everything. Our little relationship lasted about a month before I had to call it quits.

Mike and I didn't get together until after winter break of our senior year. We had been friends since his family moved here our freshman year, but he had always liked me, I had been told several times by Jessica, who had a major crush on Mike. I had always denied Mike's requests to go out with me, because I was a good friend to Jessica, and I wasn't really into him. But it had been a while since my last relationship, and Jessica was dating some guy from Port Angeles, so I agreed to dating Mike, and we were together until after graduation. We slept together over spring break, and it had been mediocre at best, but I gave him the benefit of the doubt since he was a virgin. I kept expecting him to pick up on what I was trying to teach him, but that never really happened. School starting and me moving to the other side of the country gave me the perfect opportunity to break things off. Mike had been crushed, and I tried to console him as best as I could, but there was only so much I could handle.

"I wonder if he's still at NYU," Alice ponders.

I shrug. "No idea, haven't talked to him since he left, except for the brief birthday wishes on Facebook every year."

"Ooh, Facebook," Alice exclaims like she's just gotten an idea. She quickly opens her phone and starts intensely pressing buttons, probably on Facebook and searching Riley Biers. "Alright, I've got his profile." There is a pause as she looks through his information. "Oh my dear lord, he's cuter now than he was two years ago. Tattoos and piercings have done this boy well."

I roll my eyes, but the image in my head of Riley covered in tattoos and with a few piercings is a good one. I have always had a thing for guys with tattoos, and Riley had always talked about getting a bunch when he had the money to do so. I think that has just spurred my picture of an ideal man.

"Oh my god," Alice gasps. Her thumb starts scrolling faster, and she seems to be frantically scrolling through his posts.

"What is it? Is he okay?" I ask, worried that her surprise is bad, like he has gotten hurt or died or something.

"Oh my god," she repeats, a bit more reverent than surprised. Now I am really curious.

"Alice, what the fuck? What happened?" I am kind of irritated that she isn't telling me, now. It's not like I can look it up on my own phone; I'm too busy trying not to run into any other cars.

"So, Mr. Biers did attend NYU for two semesters. But he transferred schools and is now attending University of Massachusetts as a third year computer science major. And from all these pictures, it appears that he lives on campus."

"Holy shit," I breathe. "We're going to the same school?" I can't really believe it, since I figured I would never see him again. But now we are going to be together on the same campus, albeit a large campus. But it is a very real possibility that we will see each other again, which I have mixed feelings about.

"Ooh, you guys should try to be a thing, again. That relationship was hot," Alice swoons, fanning herself. She laughs when I glare at her from the corner of my eye.

"I don't think that's gonna happen, Al," I tell her honestly. "I don't know if I even wanna see him again."

"Why not? You said there weren't any hard feelings."

"There weren't," I confirm. "I feel fine about possibly running into him. I had just resolved myself with never seeing him again, and now it's kinda being undone. It's just a weird feeling, ya know?"

"Well, it's a bridge we can cross when we get to it."

}ACH{

 _7:51 pm_

"Bella, when should I get off?"

"Just pull off whenever we get into the Boise city limit. We'll just find a motel for the night," I instruct Alice.

We have been on the road nearly nonstop all the way through Oregon, and now into Idaho. We had stopped twice for the restroom and to stretch our legs, and Alice took over driving about four hours ago, since I didn't think I could physically push the pedal down anymore. We are making pretty good time, and we can probably keep going, but I want to be in a fairly habited area when we stop for the night. It is always a possibility to leave early in the morning, anyway.

It takes one or two more exits for us to finally see a city limit sign for Boise, so Alice pulls off the freeway and we quickly spot a Motel 6, which is as good a place as any for us to rest for the night. Alice pulls into the parking lot and gets out of the car to go get us a room. Since I am not yet 18, Alice has to put the room in her name, so I go and get us food from the KFC across the street while she gets everything straightened out.

When I return, Alice is standing in the parking lot waiting for me. She gets our overnight bags from the car and leads me up to our room, which just has a single queen size bed in it. We have no problem sharing a bed, especially if it means the room is cheaper.

We quickly eat and chat about our plans for the next day. We figure if we wake up by six, we can be on the road shortly after, and we can be in Salt Lake City by ten or eleven. If we can make good time, we plan to stop to get some breakfast/brunch and wander around a little bit before taking off again. We want to be in or around Cheyenne, Wyoming by eight o' clock tomorrow night before deciding what our next move is going to be.

Alice showers that night after I decide I am just going to shower in the morning, since my hair will not take kindly to being slept on wet. We fall asleep quickly, exhausted from the day full of traveling.

The next morning, I wake before Alice to take a shower. By the time I am out and dressed, Alice is awake with two cups of coffee and some English muffins from the continental breakfast the motel served. We eat our makeshift breakfast while we chat about places we for sure want to stop on our journey. We have already agreed to make a pit stop in Chicago, even though it is a little bit out of our way. But I really want to see the Bean, and Alice really wants to have authentic Chicago style pizza.

We are back on the road before seven, and we don't stop until we get to Salt Lake City, Utah. We both desperately need to pee, so we stop at the closest gas station to fill up the tank and empty our bladders before deciding on a place to eat. After asking a few locals that are at the gas station at the same time, we head to a diner a few blocks down.

Alice and I are quickly sat in a booth once we arrive and the waitress immediately puts down cups of coffee in front of us. I have a serious caffeine addiction that hadn't been satisfied yesterday, so I am more than making up for it today.

"Is there anything really to do in Cheyenne, or are we saving all the fun stuff until we get more towards the coast?" Alice inquires.

"Well, there's a transportation museum, if you wanna hit that up tomorrow morning," I tell her, faux enthusiasm thick in my voice.

Alice rolls her eyes. "I'll pass." She focuses back on the menu as she decides what to eat. "Will there be anything fun to do any time soon?"

"Omaha is more populated, and I know there's like, botanical gardens and outdoor malls," I tell her. "I wanna get some pictures there, if I can."

"How many pictures have you already taken, Bella?" Alice asks me, raising her eyebrow.

I shrug. Alice always indulges me when it comes to all the pictures I take, but I know she sometimes gets annoyed. I have taken pictures of us at every state line sign that we have passed so far, and I want to get pictures of us at any sights we go to see. I know I am going to get quite a few once we go to Chicago, but I want more along the way.

Renee had introduced me to photography when I was younger, since she was going through a phase where she was really into photography. She had bought me a polaroid camera, and she had quickly moved on to her next project, but I became hooked on it. I never travelled anywhere without my polaroid and my digital camera that Charlie had gotten me for my sixteenth birthday. I love playing with lighting and experimenting with background and foreground contrasts. If it was practical, I would major in photography, but it isn't and UMass didn't offer it, so I chose the only other thing I was really interested in: journalism. I plan to keep up on the photography, though.

The waitress comes back to take our orders and refill our mugs before flitting away again.

"Have you thought more about the whole Riley thing?" Alice asks, taking a sip of her coffee.

"I wasn't aware that there _was_ a Riley thing," I counter, raising my eyebrows at her.

"Oh, come on, Bella," Alice huffs, rolling her eyes. "You know what I mean. What if he wants you? From what I heard, the sex was fantastic." She wiggles her eyebrows at me. "Maybe he'd want to rekindle that flame."

I shrug. "But what if he has a girlfriend, or he really has no interest in me anymore? It _has_ been two years, Al. People move on. I really don't want to think about things that might not even be a reality. Like you said: it's a bridge we'll cross when we get to it."

"Okay, humor me, here," she says. "What if you guys run into each other, and he's just as taken with you as he was when we were in high school? What if he tells you he wants to have a thing again, and he's not tied to anyone else? Would you do it?"

I shrug again. "Sure, why not? Even you knew the sex was good, and I'm all for great sex, because lord knows my life has been lacking that since Riley left." I huff at the sad state of my sex life. "I'd probably do a friends with benefits thing with him, but I'm not sure I'd really be interested in a relationship. I want to take part of college to just be me and figure out what exactly it is that I'm doing with my life. I care for Riley, but I don't think I'd want to date him again. At least not right away."

"But you'd be open to sucking his cock and getting boned by him every once in a while?"

"Absolutely."

There is a serious look on my face for about five seconds before we both burst into laughter.

}ACH{

 _August 27th, 2015_

 _3:28 pm_

I have just pulled off the highway at a rest stop in Middle Of Nowhere, Wyoming, when my cell phone begins to ring. Alice checks the caller ID for me before telling me it is my dad. I groan when I realize I haven't called or texted my dad since we left Forks. I tell her to answer it for me, since my dad will have an absolute fit if I talk to him on the phone while I am driving.

"Hey Chief," Alice greets. She pauses for a few moments while Charlie speaks. "No, she's fine, she's just driving right now. We're about to stop to stretch our legs and use the little girl's room. Do you want to wait or have her call you when we get out?" Alice nods as my dad responds. "Alright, will do. Bye, Charlie."

Alice turns to me. "He's pretty pissed."

I grimace. "Shit, I know. I totally forgot about calling him. Between eating, sleeping, and driving, my mind hasn't had a whole lot of focus on anything else."

I find a parking spot closest to the restrooms, and Alice and I quickly get out of the car. Alice is taking over driving the rest of the way to Cheyenne, so I will finally get a break. After I relieve my bladder, I pull my phone out and call Charlie back; he answers on the second ring.

"Bells, what did I tell you?" he demands more than asks.

I sigh. "I'm sorry, I totally forgot last night, I'm sorry. I was exhausted once we got to Boise. I pretty much ate and then passed out. I promise to call you when I get to the motel tonight." I feel like shit for not calling Charlie. I know both his paternal side and his cop side are worrying with possible scenarios of why I haven't called him.

"Thank you," he says gruffly. "Have you decided where you're stopping tonight?"

"Yeah, we're gonna stop in Cheyenne. We're about four or five hours out."

"And then where are you headed tomorrow?"

"Omaha. It's about eight hours away, so I figure we'll stop somewhere at the halfway point, get some lunch and then stay the night in Omaha. There's some gardens and an outdoor mall that we want to check out, so we'll probably hang out for a few hours before getting back on the road."

"Do you know where you're going after that?" Charlie likes to know details.

I shake my head, even though he can't see the action. "No, we'll figure that out tonight or tomorrow morning."

"Alright. Just text more or something when you settle down for the night."

"Will do, Dad. Love you."

"Love you, too, Bells." With that, we hang up, and Alice comes out of the restroom.

"Ready to get going?" she asks. I nod and toss her the keys to the car.

When we settle in, she hooks up her phone to the auxiliary cord and selects a song. Livin' on a Prayer by Bon Jovi starts playing, and we sing along as she heads back onto the freeway.

We sing along to several songs on the playlist before Alice turns the music down. She glances at me from the corner of her eye.

"Bella," she says, somewhat hesitantly. I raise my eyebrows at her tone, because Alice is always sure of herself. She is the type of person that never gives a shit what anyone else thinks, and she makes sure you know she doesn't give a shit about your opinion. Of course, she values mine above almost everyone else's, but she never sounds hesitant.

"What's up, Al?"

"What would you say if I told you I wanted to get another piercing?"

"I'd say 'go for it'," I tell her, shrugging. Alice already has two on her nose, and the several in her ears that she's accumulated since she was little.

"What if I told you I wanted to get my nipples done?" she asks. "And what if I asked you to get them done with me?"

I furrow my eyebrows. "Since when do you want to get your nipples pierced?" I ask. Alice has always said that her next piercing is going to be her belly button, she just hasn't gotten the chance to do it yet. I was the one that always said I had wanted to get my nipples pierced.

"Since about thirty seconds ago when I proposed the idea to you," she says giggling. "It sounded like a good idea, all of a sudden. So what do you say? When we stop in Omaha tomorrow, do you wanna get our nipples pierced?"

"Alice, I'm not eighteen, yet. I can't get my nipples pierced." Of all people, I figure Alice would remember this detail, considering she has been itching since her birthday in March for my birthday, which isn't until September.

"Do you honestly think anyone in Omaha, Nebraska is going to ask for ID?" she scoff. "They didn't even ask for ID when I got my septum pierced, and I had just turned eighteen."

"I mean, we can try it, but I'm not promising you anything." I will hold her hand through it if I can't get them done myself.

"I bet you they'll do it," she says.

"We'll see, Brandon."

}ACH{

 _August 28th, 2015_

 _6:17 pm_

We make it to Omaha much quicker than I expect, so Alice and I visit the outdoor mall, where Alice buys a few clothing items, and I cave and buy a few things, too. We eat at the food court for dinner before heading to the botanical gardens, which surprisingly don't close until eight. On our way over, Alice spots a tattoo shop and demands that we go once we are done at the gardens. I agree, although I am skeptical that I'm getting pierced tonight.

At the gardens, Alice fawn over the beautiful plants and flowers and all the butterflies while I snap pictures of whatever I think looks good. I get a few of Alice standing amongst foliage, darkened by the rays of the setting sun that are shining in through the glass panes that make up the walls. I remind myself to go through these once I get to Boston so I'll be able to print out all the good ones and post them up in our dorm.

Once the botanical gardens closed, I drive over to the tattoo shop Alice had pointed out and park after making sure it is still open. Alice leads me in by the hand, and we are greeted by a man and a woman who are hanging out behind the front counter.

"Hey, what can we help you ladies with?" the guy asks. He is a little older, with a greying beard and mustache and crinkles around his eyes. Both arms are covered in tattoos and the smile on his face is warm and friendly.

"We wanna get our nipples pierced," Alice tells him.

The guy throws a thumb at the girl beside him who is younger than him, but definitely older than Alice and me. She also has several tattoos and several piercings in different areas of her body. "This is your gal."

The woman smiles and lifts the partition of the counter, allowing Alice and me to step through to the main part of the shop. "Follow me," she says. Alice and I trail behind her as she leads us to a room in the back that has drawers lining the walls, a seat in the center, and a rolling cart, much like ones they have in hospitals.

"Both of you are getting them done?" she asks, donning a pair of latex gloves. We both nod as Alice takes a seat first. "One or both, sweetie?"

"Both," Alice says, before pulling her shirt over her head. Alice is already bare underneath, since she rarely ever wears a bra, especially in the summer time. She can get away with not wearing one, since her small A-cups are perfectly perky and look great in whatever she wore. I am not as fortunate. Even though my boobs are plenty perky, thanks to wonderful genes, my full D's are much larger than Alice's. She has told me on several occasions that I can go without a bra, and I do when it is just her and me, but I typically put one on if I am going to be out in public for an extended period of time.

The woman asks Alice if she wants barbells or hoops, and Alice answers barbells. She quickly sterilizes the area before placing the clamps, which Alice winces at, and opening the needle and jewelry. The woman is quick and sure in her movements, steadily piercing the needle through Alice's skin and swapping the jewelry out in its place. To do both sides, it takes her probably about a minute total, which is very impressive. Alice quickly throws her shirt back on and bounces up, motioning for me to take her place.

I am really surprised that they didn't ask for ID, but I know I definitely look older than eighteen. Alice may be questionable, but I'm sure the piercings in her face make people think she is at least her age. I sit in the chair and remove my top and my bra as I tell the woman that I want barbells, as well. She just nods and goes through the motions again, putting on a new pair of gloves before wiping me down and clamping the area off. I wince, as Alice had, and wince again as the needle passes through. The second one definitely hurts more than the first, since my adrenaline has warn off by the time she gets to the second one.

Within five minutes, both Alice and I are clothed and paying forty bucks a piece. We quickly thank the two and they wave goodbye as they bid us a goodnight.

Since it is still early, and Alice and I are still on an adrenaline rush, we decide to keep driving on into Iowa, since it will cut back on our drive tomorrow, and we'll be able to spend more time in Chicago. I take over at the wheel and have Alice text Charlie that we are going to be stopping later than expected.

After about a two and a half hour drive, we arrive in Des Moines, Iowa and decide to call it a night. We settle down in a hotel and decide to leave around seven the next morning. At this rate, we'll be in Chicago by one o'clock tomorrow afternoon.

* * *

 **So, how are we feeling so far? Any suggestions, comments, concerns? I read each and every review, and I will try to respond to all of them this time around. I know I was really bad with that for ATRM, and I apologize.**

 **As always, I love hearing from you guys! Even if it's to tell me you think this sucks. I literally appreciate all comments. Seriously. Please review.**

 **Alright! I plan to have the next chapter up by the end of the weekend. Maybe sooner if you bless me with reviews. I'm a very praise-motivated person. Not even gonna lie.**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	2. Just Wanna Touch You

**Hey! So I posted my second to last chapter of ATRM earlier today, so I figured we'd start the week out with another chapter of this one. Plus, some of you have expressed your excitement to meet Edward, so I have come through. I hope you guys enjoy!**

* * *

 **CHAPTER TWO**

 **Just Wanna Touch You For a Minute**

 _Saturday, August 29th, 2015_

 _1:24 pm_

"Pizza or sandwiches? Alice asks, scrolling through listings on her phone. We have just gotten off the freeway and are officially in Chicago. It is amazing to be in such an eclectic area, and I am really itching to get my fingers on my camera and take photos all over the city. Instead of stopping at a park, though, we are trying to find a place to eat. I am starving, no doubt, but I really want to go out and experience the city.

"Pizza sounds good," I tell her, coming to stop at a red light. "I could go for some authentic Chicago deep-dish." I look over at her and smile. "Aren't you excited to be in The Windy City?"

"It's really beautiful here, Bella," she beams back at me. "I'm really glad we get to experience this together. College is gonna be a blast!"

}ACH{

After we find a place to eat and share the most delicious deep-dish pizza I have ever consumed in my life, we park the car at a meter and enjoy a walk around Millennium Park. I brought an extra memory card with me for my camera, and I enjoy taking far too many pictures. Alice and I take the obligatory silly photos in front of Cloud Gate, which she promptly posts to Instagram, Facebook and Tumblr, both hers and mine. We stay in the park until about six that evening before finding a cheap place to eat and a motel for the night.

I check my Facebook as Alice and I sit in bed watching some local news station. Apparently, Chicago is unusually warm for this time of year this summer, but anything is warm for Alice and me when it only gets up into the low seventies in Forks over the summer.

The pictures Alice had posted on our walls read that we are on a road trip on our way to University of Massachusetts. There are several likes from friends from back home, as well as some of my family who actually use Facebook, like my grandma and her sisters. They mainly use it to play online games, but they do like and comment on posts sometimes. As I am scrolling through the photos, a notification pops up. I click on it, and it opens up the messenger app that corresponds with Facebook. As I read the name of the sender, I make a strangled sound, which gets Alice's attention.

"What is it? You sound like you choked on your own spit," she says, giving me a somewhat concerned but mostly curious look.

"Riley may or may not have just messaged me on Facebook," I tell her.

"What?" she shouts, automatically scooting herself closer to me and moving my hands so they are more between us. Alice is the most nosy person I have ever met, and she is extremely lucky that I let her into so much of my life without protest. "What did he say?"

"I obviously haven't opened it yet, Al," I tell her. I hold back an eye roll as I tap on his name, opening up the message thread.

"'Hey, I saw that you're on your way to UMass. Are you attending college there?'" Alice reads, her voice taking on a strange deep tone, like she is pretending to be Riley. "He's totally been creeping on your profile."

"Or the post popped up on his feed," I reason. "He's probably only talking to me because he saw that I mentioned the school he goes to in it."

"Or because he's still in love with you." Alice waggles her eyebrows. "Message him back already. He's seen that you've read it."

"He's not in love with me, Al," I deny. There is no way he is in love with me anymore, or that he was at all in the first place. I type out a message quickly saying that I am going to UMass with Alice, hoping he'd remember her and not make this awkward with her reading this with me.

I can feel Alice holding her breath as she waits for Riley to respond, and honestly, so am I. I am unexpectedly excited about my ex-boyfriend talking to me via Facebook. It means I was somewhat still on his mind, especially if he took the time to go through the photos that had been posted.

A message pops up after about thirty seconds, and Alice reads it out loud again.

"'Cool! I transferred there after a year. I guess I'll see you around. Feel free to hit me up, Bella. I can show you and Alice around if you need any help once you get here.'" She squeals a little bit, making me cringe. "He's totally still hot for you. You should fuck him."

"Mary Alice Brandon!" I balk. "A Facebook message does not equate to him wanting to hookup. Maybe you just need to get laid. You sound horny and deprived."

"I'm waiting to find the nice boy that sweeps me off my feet," she says, getting a dreamy tone to her voice. "Both romantically and sexually."

"I'm sure I'll hear all the dirty details once it finally happens."

The next day is a whirlwind of sightseeing and exploring and picture-taking. We visit the Art Institute of Chicago and Willis Tower. It takes a little convincing on my part to get Alice into the glass room overlooking the city, but once she is in there, she can't stop giggling. We take a lot more pictures, which are continuously getting uploaded to social media sites. By late afternoon, we decide it is time to get moving again, so we hit the road.

We are in Toledo, Ohio around nine that night. As soon as we make our way into a motel room, I call my dad and let him know we have enjoyed our time in Chicago and we are now in Ohio. He wishes me safe travels and bids both Alice and me goodnight.

We don't even bother with dinner tonight, since we are exhausted from a day filled with fun and traveling. Alice showers as I flip through channels haphazardly, not really in the mood for watching TV since I am so tired. I just want to sleep and wake up to get breakfast in the morning, but Alice and I never fell asleep without the other whenever we are together. I just have to wait until she is out of the shower, and then I can fall asleep.

As I am waiting, and just about to accidentally drift off, my phone dings with a new notification. I tiredly open my phone, seeing it is a message from Riley. His name wakes me up a little, and I am curious as to why he is messaging me at this time of night. It isn't late by any means, it just isn't the normal time to start a conversation with someone.

 _Hey, I really wanna see you when you get settled in. Message me when you're all set. Have a good night, Bella._

I give a smug little smile at his message, satisfied that he is the one that is messaging and reaching out to me, and not the other way around. There is something about him still wanting to see me, especially since he is the older college guy that has all this experience that I don't have. Although, he had always been into me, as evidenced by a senior dating a sophomore, so it isn't all that surprising. Okay, maybe just a little. But still.

I don't bother responding to him, since it really doesn't merit a response. I set my phone back down and cuddle back into bed, just as Alice exits the bathroom. I bid her a quick goodnight before falling fast asleep.

}ACH{

Monday, _August 31st, 2015_

 _8:22 am_

Alice drives us out of Ohio after we eat a continental breakfast at the motel. I sip on a large cup of coffee as she quietly sings along to the song on the radio. Alice is always much more perky in the mornings than I am, naturally. I require a few cups of coffee in order to fully wake up and become a functioning human being. She seems to be able to just wake up and spring into action like she has been awake for hours instead of ten minutes. I am just a little jealous.

Our plan is to be in New York, New York by the early afternoon, which is a bit of a detour from the normal route to Boston. But, much like Chicago, New York City is one of the must-see places on our list while we are taking this trip. We'll spend the rest of the day and the next in the Big Apple before just going straight to Boston.

We make a few pit stops for some snacks and bathroom breaks before finally arriving in the middle of the crowded city and struggle to find a motel where I can leave my car and stay for the night. We are able to eventually find a halfway decent place, and we quickly set out to sightsee before the area gets creepy.

We are able to go to Times Square and take lots of pictures before walking to Rockefeller Center. We spend time wandering and goofing around before asking a local for a place to eat for dinner. We are personally escorted to a deli by a nice older couple who apparently lives in the area where our motel is located. They treat us to our meal and ask us where we are from and what we are doing in New York. They are delighted to hear that we are from Washington, a state they have never been to before. We tell them we have never been out of state, and we have been on a road trip cross country on our way to UMass. They congratulate us on our achievement and wish us luck on the rest of our travels as well as our education.

The next day we take a trip to Central Park and to the harbor to see the Statue of Liberty. Of course, Alice has to go shopping, so we take a trip to Fifth Avenue, and she shops to her little heart's desire. I am dragged along with her and hold her bags for her when she accumulates a little too much. We end the night walking along Broadway and eating food from vendors along the street. We get back to the motel around eleven that night and promptly fall asleep.

Eight o'clock the next morning comes way too quickly, and I huff my way to the car while Alice giggles at my grumpy state. She has gotten me coffee from a nearby shop while I had showered, but it hasn't kicked in yet, and I am not a productive part of society at the moment. We are able to get on the road to Boston quickly, and we are making progress until traffic comes to a complete standstill about an hour outside of the city.

Alice looks up traffic conditions on her phone and sees that there is a crash that completely cut off all lanes of traffic this direction, and it doesn't look like it is clearing any time soon. Several of the cars have caught on fire and are becoming difficult to contain, but this is several miles ahead, so we aren't being evacuated.

We sit in our car listening to the radio and snacking on things we have in the car for about an hour and half before I absolutely have to get out and stretch my legs. Luckily, I had used the restroom right before we ran into traffic, so hopefully I won't have to before this all gets cleared up. I' just getting antsy, and I can't be cooped up in my little car for another second.

"I'm gonna get out and wander a little. Wanna come with me?" I ask Alice. Her eyes flit up from where she is playing a game on her phone. She studies me for a moment, contemplating, before nodding and throwing her door open.

I chuckle at her as I do the same, pulling my keys from the ignition so nothing bad will happen, not that anyone can get my car anywhere if anyone decides to steal it. We are pretty much stuck here until the accident is cleared.

It is hot by my standards, considering it only gets into the low seventies in Forks during the summer. You basically always needed a light sweater or long sleeve, except for on those rare days when it got into the high seventies. It is at least in the mid-eighties right now, and it has been much of the time Alice and I have been approaching the east coast. We had dug out shorts and t-shirts from some of our other luggage a few days back, since our jeans were proving to be unnecessary. A t-shirt, my cutoff shorts, and a bun on top of my head have been my go-to look recently, and today is no different.

"I hope they clear this up before I turn eighty," Alice says, keeping her eyes in her phone. I see the top of Alice's head more during this trip than the rest of her face. I am driving most of the time and I can't always entertain her, and Alice is the type of person that needs to be entertained constantly. I can do a pretty good job when I'm not preoccupied by driving, but I have been doing a lot of that over the last week.

"Someone came by a while ago and said it shouldn't be more than a couple hours," comes a voice from beside us. The male voice came from a car parked next to ours. All the windows are rolled down and smoke is trailing out of the back window closest to me.

"When was that?" I ask the mystery guy. I can't make out his face since that part of the car is shrouded in shadow from the angle of the sun.

"About a half hour ago," he responds. He opens the door and out steps a massive human being. This guy is bigger than Embry, who is a football player, and is six-foot-two, two hundred and sixty pounds of muscle. This guy has at least three inches on Embry and about twenty more pounds. It seems like he is just completely made of muscle, and he looks menacing until he smiles at Alice and me, and deep dimples dig into each of his cheeks. His grin is goofy and his curly brown hair softens his persona. It even softens the sleeve of tattoos on each arm and the one I can see snaking up the side of his neck from under his shirt.

"I'm Emmett McCarty," he introduces, extending his hand first to me and then to Alice.

"I'm Bella, and this is Alice," I say.

"You guys from around here?" he asks. He cranes his neck around me and peers into the back windows of my car. "Looks like you've got your lives back there."

"We're from Washington, but we're going to school as UMass, so we had a road trip," Alice explains. "I really like your tattoos, by the way."

"Thank you, Alice. I'm a tattoo artist. I graduated from UMass last year. I have a shop by the school." He reaches into the car and pulls out his wallet. He flips it open and hands a business card to Alice. "What about you, Doe Eyes? You want a card?" He seems to be inspecting me, searching for a sign that I'd actually be willing to get a tattoo.

I cross my arms at his assessment, raising my eyebrow at him. "Not if you're gonna be an asshole about it and judge me, Curly," I snark.

"No offense," he says, raising his arms in surrender. "Just the lack of piercings other than your ears is usually indicative of a person's interest in tattoos."

"Oh, Bella has piercings other than her ears," Alice says, a mischievous smile stretching across her face.

I roll my eyes at her reference to my newly acquired jewelry. "The fact that I'm not eighteen yet prevents me from getting piercings on my own. My dad isn't the biggest fan, except for where Ali's are concerned."

"You're only seventeen?" Emmett asks, seeming genuinely shocked. Everyone is when I tell them my real age. I mean, my birthday is only in a couple of weeks, but people have been pegging me for much older than I actually am for most of my life. "If you came into my shop, I wouldn't even ask for ID."

"You wouldn't ask for ID because you think she's attractive, not because she looks older than she is," a woman's voice says, moments before a very beautiful blond emerges from the driver's seat of the car. Her shiny hair is pulled back in a ponytail, and even then it cascades past her shoulders. Her eyes are a piercing blue, reflecting the light of the sun. Her skin is beautifully tanned, and her body looks like it belongs on the cover of a magazine. She walks around the car to stand next to Emmett, and her legs go on forever in her cutoff shorts.

"You know I only have eyes for you, Rosie," the man says, wrapping a muscly arm around her slim waist. He pulls her closer to him and smacks a kiss onto her cheek, to which she smiles. She is covered in a fair amount of tattoos as well, and her navel is pierced, the jewelry sitting at the hem of her crop top.

"Just because you're in love doesn't mean you don't check out other girls," a man says from inside the car. The window has only been cracked enough to let the smoke out, but now it's rolled all the way down, exposing a shadowed face wearing sunglasses. His hand comes to rest on the sill, a cigarette gripped between his first two fingers.

"Women are hot," the woman says, shrugging at the guy in the car. "I check women out; I'm not gonna balk at Em for doing the same." Emmett smiles down at who I am assuming is his girlfriend.

"One of the many reasons I love this woman," he whoops, giving her waist a squeeze. She chuckles at him before turning to Alice and me.

"I'm Rosalie, by the way," she introduces, extending her hand out for us to take. "You can call me Rose. So, you guys are starting at UMass?" We both nod and Rose smiles. "Cool, Eddie and I go there, too," she says, gesturing to the guy sitting in the car.

He groans. "Please do not introduce me as 'Eddie'," he says. "Only you and Em call me that, and it drives me crazy."

Rosalie rolls her eyes. "Fine, _Edward_ and I go there. What are your majors?"

"Marketing," Alice tells her.

"Journalism and a minor in photography," I say. "What about you guys?"

"I'm a kinesiology major," Rose says.

"Music," Edward says shortly before putting the cigarette between his lips.

"Do you guys work at Emmett's shop?" Alice asks.

Rose nods. "Yeah, I'm the piercer, and Eddie is an artist."

"Wait, do you do photography currently?" Emmett asks, suddenly rejoining the conversation. He has a hopeful look on his face as he looks at me.

I raise an eyebrow at him. "Yeah, why?"

"I'm looking for someone to take pictures of our pieces. Right now we just take them on our phones, but I want it to look a little more professional."

"Oh, I'm not a professional, by any means," I deny.

"Are you kidding?" Alice balks. "She's been taking photos for years. Her photos always turn out so well! Bella, show them your camera! She's got hundreds of pictures from our trip. She's done people's weddings back in our hometown. Not a professional, my ass." Alice scoffs and takes it upon herself to open the door to the backseat of my car where my camera bag is sitting. She pulls my camera out and turns it on. She starts scrolling through the memory card, walking over to show Rose and Emmett.

They start complimenting my photos, especially those from New York and Chicago, as well as the botanical garden we had visited. I can feel a blush forming on my cheeks. Alice even pulls out her phone and goes onto Facebook to find photos I have done of weddings in the past. Rosalie especially oohs and awes over those, and I can see the longing in her eyes. I wonder how long Emmett and she have been together.

"Not used to people going gaga over your pictures, Jailbait?" Edward says, pulling my attention away from Alice and her apparent new friends.

"Jailbait?" I ask, confused at the nickname.

"You're underage and cute, and you're going to end up getting someone in trouble in college. Jailbait," he explains.

"You think I'm cute?" I ask, a smirk tugging at my lips.

I can't see behind his sunglasses—I can't see any of his face, really—but I have a strong feeling that he rolls his eyes. "I have two eyes, I'm not gonna deny that you're attractive."

"I'd compliment you back, but I can't see anything since you're hiding in the car," I say. I can feel myself flirting with him, even though it isn't my intention. I have been called cute and attractive before, so I'm not encouraged by his compliment. I really don't know why I'm saying the things I am. I am a pretty blunt person, but I really don't know this guy at all.

He waves his hand at me to tell me to step back, so I do as he opens the door and steps out. He is a lot taller than I had imagined. He towers over me, but that isn't much to say, considering I am only about five-foot-four. I'd peg him to be around six-foot-two; definitely shorter than Emmett, but definitely taller than the average guy. He has coppery-blond hair that shimmers in the sun where it is in a wild disarray on his head. His eyes are hidden behind his black Ray Bans, so I can't make out much of his face. As if he is reading my mind, he pulls the sunglasses off his face and places them in the collar of his white t-shirt.

His face is actually startlingly beautiful. I thought Riley was the most attractive boy I had ever seen in person, but this Edward guy is definitely taking the cake. His jaw is angular and strong, his lips are pink and pouty in the most attractive way. His eyes are the most amazing green I have ever seen, a unique jade that are rimmed with a slight amber color.

He crosses his arms over his chest, drawing attention to the surprising amount of muscle there and the tattoos that create a full sleeve on one arm and a half sleeve on the other. I can see a lot of color under his white t-shirt, hinting at the tattoos that cover his torso.

"I'm not gonna lie, you're pretty hot," I tell him, my eyes back on his face. 'Pretty hot' is an understatement. More like, 'the way you licked your lips right then made my lady bits tingle like I've never felt before.' So, you know, a little bit more than 'pretty hot'. But I can't really tell him all of that.

Edward smirks at me like he knows something that I don't. It's not like he has happened to catch me checking him out; I had made my intentions clear and he had basically offered his body up for me to peruse with my eyes. I thought we had come to a silent agreement about what had just transpired here.

In the next instant, the meaning behind his smirk is clear. His eyes flick down to my chest as he gives a soft chuckle. "Excited to see me?"

My brows furrow at his question, but his eyes haven't moved from my breasts. I am used to guys staring down below my neck. It isn't like I made a real effort to cover them up completely, but his stare is more than just the casual way that guys usually check them out. His look is pointed, and his previously green eyes have turned a darker shade, or his pupils have dilated to take up most of the space of his irises.

My own eyes flick down to my chest, and I gasp slightly at the sight before me. I haven't been wearing a proper bra today, since we are spending most all of it in the car, and Alice had convinced me just to wear a bralette under my t-shirt. Thanks to said bralette, my surprisingly aroused nipples are now making an appearance to anyone who looked, but the only person looking is the person who caused the arousal in the first place. And now I know the smirk on his face is a smirk that said he knows exactly what his very presence is doing to my body.

 _Stupid Alice. I'm never wearing a bralette again._

I roll my eyes and huff at Edward, a defense mechanism of sorts when something embarrassing happens to me. I'm not going to bother trying to cover my nipples, because he has already seen them. I'll just have to wait until it subsides on its own and hope he won't use this instance against me any time in the future. With hopes, I'll never have to see him again, so it won't even be an issue.

 _Who am I kidding? I wanna see this guy every day of my life. I wanna see his beautiful tattoos and his muscular body. Ooh, I wonder what his chest and stomach look like under his shirt? Oh, and his beautiful face. I definitely want to see that again. Mostly from between my thighs. Yeah, that would be the best case scenario._

I shake my head slightly to get myself out of my Edward-induced haze. No need to be thinking about him so sexually while he is right in front of me and staring at my still-hard nipples. I am almost positive that the barbells that are freshly through them can be easily distinguished, as well.

His eyes flick up to mine, and his smirk turns into a full-fledged grin. He winks at me, and I can feel my traitorous nipples tighten even further, if that is possible. I have a feeling I'll be in a constant state of arousal around this guy. And he probably will never do anything about it because he thinks that I'm was jailbait. Maybe there is some way to subtly let him know that my birthday is less than two weeks away, and then I'll be a legal adult. Hopefully then he'll do something about the poor state he is leaving my body in.

"Hey, I think I can see traffic moving up ahead," Emmett says, pointing about five miles ahead of us, where the freeway curves a bit. Sure enough, cars are slowly moving, just starting to pick up speed from being at a dead stop.

"Well, we'll probably see you two around school and such," Rosalie saya, giving first Alice then me a hug. "I'll call you guys to catch up after you get settled in, yeah?"

Alice nods and smiles and bids everyone a goodbye before hopping back in the car. I say goodbye to Rosalie and Emmett, who wraps me in a very tight hug.

As I am getting into the driver's seat, I hear Emmett's booming voice over the sound of all the cars around us starting their engines.

"Come on, Eddie, we better get you back to your girlfriend. Irina's gonna flip that you're late." His laugh booms as he starts his own car.

When I look over at Edward in the back seat, I can see him grimacing as he lights another cigarette.

So much for him helping me out with the problem he caused.

}ACH{

 _Wednesday, September 2nd, 2015_

 _3:44 pm_

Despite the hold up in traffic early on in the afternoon, Alice and I make it to our dorms on campus by mid-day, after getting turned around with directions a few times. We are greeted by a nice girl named Bree who works in the housing office when we check in. She gives us the rundown on dorm life for freshman as she walks us to our building and escorts us to our room. She lets us know the general information on the rules of conduct and things to avoid doing. She opens the door to our dorm and then gives us our keys, a lanyard with the school's logo on it, and a handbook for dorm life. She bids us good luck with moving in and promises to see us around campus before she is off to help another incoming student.

Technically, Alice and I live in an apartment very close to campus, but these apartments are used by the school strictly for students, so it is all regulated by the housing department. We live in a unit with three bedrooms connected to a central living area that has a small kitchen and a living room. Each room has their own bathroom for the roommates to share. Alice and I are sharing a room, and there will be four other people here with us, but they have yet to move in. All living arrangements are co-ed, so we'd most likely be sharing our space with a guy. God forbid he be attractive, because Alice would be all over him like gravy on ham.

Alice and I make quick work of moving our stuff from the car into the room, which is luckily only on the second floor, and our building has a very convenient elevator that is only one room down from our own. By the time we have gotten our beds made and most of our stuff put away temporarily, our stomachs are growling and begging to be fed. Unfortunately, the dining halls on campus aren't open until tomorrow, so Alice and I are on our own to go explore some of Boston. Classes don't start until the fourteenth, but all of the freshman are expected to be moved in by the coming weekend due to orientation events the next week.

On Bree's recommendation, we go to a place called Savin Bar and Kitchen, which is only a five minute drive from the campus. It is a bit early for the place to be busy, especially on a Wednesday, so we hang out and chat with some of the staff while eating our burgers and watching a college football game of some sort. Even after living with Charlie pretty much my whole life, I'm not much into sports, much to his chagrin. I can easily recognize teams and what city or state they are in, but I don't know jack shit about the sports themselves. I always suspected that Charlie secretly wishes I had been a boy.

A girl our age waits on us and introduces herself as Kate. She says she attended the university as well, and she is a third year political science major with a minor in business administration, which sounds like one hell of an undertaking. She asks for our majors and then what building we are staying in, as well as where we have come from. I'd say she was quite the Chatty Kathy, but after knowing Alice for as long as I can remember, I know that there is no one that could hold a flame to her, so I take Kate's questions in stride.

Kate is the type of girl that I imagine frequents the beaches in California instead of the cold shores of Boston. She has short blond hair that brushes right above her shoulders, and her eyes are an interesting amber color that sparkle with her smile. Her skin is sun kissed, like she spends a lot of time outside, and from her lean physique, I have a feeling she is a runner, if not for the school, then at least recreationally. She is probably and inch or two taller than me, but she has a petite frame like Alice, and if not for the layer of muscle that is well-defined, she'd probably seem sickly skinny. As it is, she looked like the star of many teenage boys' wet dreams.

After she brings us our meals, she informs us that she is now on her break and asks if she could sit with us to chat some more. We offer her a seat and resume a conversation.

"Are you guys going to be going to the orientation events?"

Before I can shrug, Alice offers her answer. "Probably a few of them, at least to get acquainted with the campus. Oh, and meet some people."

"Have you met anyone from around here yet?" Kate asks.

"We ran into some people from around here when we were stuck in traffic earlier today. Two of them go to school here," Alice offers.

"Ooh, you guys got caught in that fiery accident?" Kate asks. We both nod with exasperated expression, which causes Kate to give a light giggle. "Sorry to hear about that. Who did you meet? I might know them. I'm the president of the Student Union, so I kind of make it my priority to know people."

Alice has just taken a bite of her burger, so I answer. "Emmett McCarty, but he said he already graduated. And his girlfriend, Rose, and some guy named Edward." I try to be as casual as possible when mentioning Edward. I am quite taken with him, despite the knowledge that he has a girlfriend, but I'm not sure if Alice is privy to that information, so I am going to keep it quiet for as long as possible. As soon as Alice has any idea that I have even an inkling of some sort of interest in Edward, she will blow it all out of proportion, and then I'll have a situation on my hands. Alice is the queen of dramatics.

"Oh, the Cullens!" Kate exclaims, an excited note in her voice. "I knew Emmett when he was still here; we had a few business classes together. But the Cullens are pretty well-known around these parts."

"Rose and Edward are related?" Alice asks. I'm surprised she hadn't known that information; she seemed to have become best friends with Rose the twenty minutes we had spoken to them on the freeway.

"Yeah, they're siblings. Edward's a senior this year and Rosalie is a sophomore. They're very…popular. Especially Edward. With the ladies." Kate seems like she felt slightly uncomfortable with this revelation, which I think is interesting. I wonder if maybe she had been one of the "ladies" that had fawned over him at one point. She doesn't really strike me as a girl that has a thing for guys with tattoos, but I can be wrong. "It's a pretty popular rumor that Edward has kinda slept with a majority of the female population of the school. My friend Irina is dating him right now. They've been dating for a few months, which I'm pretty sure is a record for Edward."

Oh, so that's why she is uncomfortable. I'm sure she is worried about her friend because of Edward's reported past with the opposite sex. I'd be concerned too—at least, I would be if the rumors were true. People like to make up crap and gossip all the time, though, so I will give him the benefit of the doubt until I have a reason not to. I don't know Edward, besides the fact that he is a tattoo artist and a music major. Oh, and that he is very open about his opinion of the female body. So, it is totally possible that he is a manwhore, but maybe it is just a ruse that he keeps up because that is what people expected of him.

"But Rosalie is really nice, if not a little intimidating," Kate continues, giggling. "She has a pretty mean case of Resting Bitch Face, but I got to know her a little bit through Emmett, and she's super sweet. Protective as all hell and would probably cut someone if they messed with the people she loves, but completely caring. I think people are a little put off by all the tattoos and the heels she's constantly wearing, but she's cool."

"Rose seems like she'd be a really good friend," Alice gushes. "We talked a bit today. She offered to help us around once we got settled. And Emmett asked if Bella would take pictures of his work for the shop."

"You're a photographer?" Kate asks, seeming a bit surprised and very excited, for some reason. I had forgotten to mention that I am minoring in photography

"Yeah, I'm minoring in it," I confirm. "Alice so graciously shoved my photos in their face."

"Bella could totally be a professional," Ali spews. I roll my eyes at the spiel that is about to ensue. "Her photos are so beautiful. I love her nature shots the most, but she does very pretty wedding photos and baby announcements and things like that. Pretty much everyone in the tiny town that we live in went to her for photos."

"You do wedding photos?" Kate seems even more excited at this. I nod as Alice happily pulls out her phone.

"You have to see these, they're so pretty!" Alice is quickly scrolling through Facebook profiles. I'm pretty sure that she keeps pages bookmarked for exactly these occasions.

"Oh my gosh!" Kate's eyes sparkle as she looks at photos with Alice. "Bella, these are incredible." She beams at me. "And really good timing."

"Do you know someone that needs pictures taken?" I wonder. I love taking photos and presenting people with them. I love how happy good photos make them. I just hate the way Alice always shoves it down everyone's throats.

"Yes, actually. My sister, Tanya, is getting married in early November, and she has yet to find someone to take photos that doesn't charge an ungodly amount. So, if you want, I can show her some photos and see if she wants to meet you."

I can't help but smile. Maybe I found my new job. Surely, a lot more people are getting married than the eight thousand people that resided in Forks, and people actually travel to Boston to get married as a destination wedding. I'll never complain about getting paid to take pictures for people.

"Yeah, that'd be great. Thanks, Kate."

Alice is quick to get her phone number, which I save as well, and I offer her my number on a napkin, which is strange considering the connotations that a number on a napkin in a bar usually holds, but a girl is just trying to make money doing what she loves. Alice prattles that she will send her a variety of photos, and she bids us goodbye as she cleans up our dishes and says she'll see us around campus. Needless to say, we leave a pretty good tip that night.

* * *

 **We gotta little peaky peak at Edward. Like I said, definitely OOC. But what I have in mind for him makes me love him, even if he is a little bit of a Dickward. I promise I have much in store for these friends. Shit's gonna get real, real quick.**

 **Again, I love love love it when you guys leave reviews! It lets me know you guys like what you're reading or if you have any ideas I can take into consideration. I just love hearing from you! I haven't had time to respond to any reviews yet, (it's been a busy week at school) but I promise, I will get to it! I love you all so much :)**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	3. Loosen Up My Buttons

**Hey! Its been a super long week, and I know I said my main focus would be ATRM until it was finished, but I haven't had time to write, and this was already prewritten, so you're getting this first. I have like 4 essays to write this weekend, and it's already 3pm on Saturday. Oops. Wish me luck!**

* * *

 **CHAPTER THREE**

 **Loosen Up My Buttons, Baby**

 _September 4th, 2015_

 _9:17 am_

Alice and I were sitting in a small coffee shop just off of campus, drinking way too much caffeine and looking over the class schedules we had just picked up an hour before. The school dished out our schedules before our orientation week so that we could get acquainted with where all our classes were before school actually started. Freshman didn't have much say in their schedules, so both Alice and I were in for a surprise when we opened up the envelope. I couldn't say I was too upset, because I had an introduction to writing class, a photography class, a math class, simply because I needed it to graduate, and a biology introduction class, because I needed that, too.

Alice, on the other hand, was a little peeved. She had gotten her necessary introduction marketing class, a math course, which she wasn't unhappy with, mostly because we were in it together, and music theory class. What she was upset about was the physical education course that she had been doled. She kept bitching, and I had to keep reminding her that she had to take it at some point anyway in order to graduate, so she might as well get it over with sooner rather than later.

"Do I look like I do PE? I don't like sweating, and I don't like the smell of other people's BO." She was definitely in a mood this morning.

"You had to take PE in high school, Alice, I'm sure you can take one semester without problem," I assured her for probably the twentieth time.

"That was because I needed it to graduate!" she protested.

I rolled my eyes. "You need it to graduate college, too." Again, approximately the twentieth time that I had told her this.

She groaned. "Whatever. Doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Don't like what?"

Suddenly, Rose appeared, making no sound despite the heels on her feet. How she could be silent on the wooden floor of the coffee shop was a complete mystery to me, but she had achieved it. She was wearing jeans and an olive colored button up shirt, since it was on the cooler side today, the marine layer still lingering in the earlier hour. It would get warmer once the clouds cleared, but it was only a breezy sixty-five at the moment.

"Physical activity," I answered with a snicker. Alice was petite naturally, just like her mother, and she always balked at the idea of joining me in a yoga class or a short run. I wasn't a health freak by any means, but I actually had to work to not become obese, so I learned to enjoy the workouts I subjected myself to throughout the week. I only ran three time a week and I attended a yoga class twice a week back in Forks, which Alice had only joined me at twice before she declared that it was much too much work and completely pointless.

Rose rolled her eyes with a smile on her face. "They hardly make you do anything in that class. It's once a week for an hour and you usually just do Zumba or something equally easy. Edward had to take it, and it was hilarious. I have videos and pictures on my phone."

"Ooh, I wanna see those," Alice declared, instantly perking up. She took entirely too much joy in other people's discomfort. I had been the center of that enjoyment for our entire friendship, so I was kind of glad that it was directed at someone else now.

Rose sat down in a vacant chair at our table and started going over our schedules with us. She commented that she really like the math professor we had and that she and I would be in the introductory writing class together. We drank our coffees together, just making small talk and getting to know each other a little bit better.

Apparently, Rose, Emmett, and Edward all lived together in an apartment complex right off of campus, and the tattoo shop was just a few miles past that. Rose and Edward's mom was born and raised in Boston and had met their father while going to college in Chicago. Once they both graduated, their father was offered a job at Mass General, so they moved back, and that's where they had been since they graduated. Carlisle, their father, was a pediatric surgeon, and their mother, Esme, was an event coordinator. Esme had gotten pregnant with Edward their final year of undergraduate school, and they got married soon after his birth. They had miraculously made it through Carlisle's medical school run and his residency, and had the balls to have Rose by choice two years after Edward was born.

"So, we're having a little party at the apartment today, sort of a last hurrah before school starts. Emmett's barbecuing and there's a heated pool," Rose explained, her finger circling the rim of her mug. "I'd like you guys to come, if you feel so inclined. I don't have a whole lot of girlfriends, and Irina is barely a step above talking to a stubborn eight year old, so I'm pretty much begging that you guys come."

Alice giggled and I couldn't help the chuckle that escaped. It was pretty clear that Rose was not all that fond of her brother's choice in company, which left me oddly satisfied for some reason.

 _Probably because you want to be the one banging Edward Cullen. Come on, Bella, it's not that big of a mystery._

I mentally berated my internal voice. I knew it was right, of course, but I wasn't going to really acknowledge my attraction to Edward. I mean, the man had a girlfriend, for goodness sake. Granted, she wasn't very liked by Rosalie, but the fact that she was reportedly the longest person Edward had been in a relationship with had to mean something. So, maybe she wasn't the most exciting person to have a conversation with, but she must be a good person if Edward kept her around.

 _Or maybe she just puts out on a regular basis._

Yeah, or that. At any rate, I couldn't see Edward keeping someone around for that reason alone, but, then again, I didn't know him at all, so he could possibly be just that shallow and eager to get and keep his dick wet.

Alice and I agreed to come over later to keep Rose company. She informed us that we were to be over with our swimsuits at four that afternoon to get a swim in before dinner. She texted Alice the address but also said you couldn't miss the building they lived in. She also got my phone number, since we hadn't swapped the other day when we met on the road.

As soon as Rose said goodbye and exited the coffee shop, Alice turned to me with a determined look on her face.

"We have to go buy you a new bathing suit," she demanded. "Where's the closest mall around here?" she mumbled to herself, her phone already in her hand in search of an answer.

"Whoa, Alice, I already have a bathing suit," I reminded her. "The one I bought for Mike's pool party last summer."

She gave me a deadpan look. "Bella."

"What?"

"That bathing suit is not appropriate for this outing."

"How? It's not overly revealing or anything. All of my ass is covered and my tits are secure."

"Exactly. That's the problem."

I felt my eyebrows draw in. "I don't follow."

She huffed a breath. "Bella, I can see the look on your face every time someone mentions Edward's name. You've got the hots for that boy. It's even worse than back in the day when someone mentioned Riley's name."

"I do not have a thing for Edward," I hissed my protest, not really wanting anyone else in the shop to hear our conversation. "Do I think he's attractive? Sure, anyone with eyes and two brain cells to rub together can see that. But I'm not trying to get with him."

Alice rolled her eyes dramatically. "Okay, okay, jeez, I get it. You don't like him, fine. Doesn't mean he's not going to get flustered by you showing some skin. Plus, you're underage; it'll bug him to no end not even being able to entertain the idea of touching you. It'll be some amusement for you, me, and Rose at the barbecue."

I groaned. "Al, he's got a girlfriend who I'm sure looks like a model just as much as Rose does. He definitely won't be looking at me or even thinking about me."

She gave me an unimpressed look. "Bella, I saw the way he was looking at you when we were on the freeway. He was pretty much eye-fucking you, girlfriend or not. Boys are animals. They do what they want, when they want. Plus, if he was really so attached to this Irina girl, he wouldn't have looked at you like that." She grinned at me. "So, whether you like it or not, we're going shopping. Now, let's go."

Alice grabbed my hand and essentially dragged me out of the coffee shop, marching me down the street of store fronts until we were in front of one that looked like it would have swimwear. It was no H&M or Victoria's Secret, but Alice said that just made the swimsuit selections more unique. If there was one thing Alice hated, it was when two people were wearing the same thing in close proximity to each other. She was a freak for uniqueness. She ordered things from Europe a lot of the time to ensure that no one else would have anything that she did. It was a little extreme, if you asked me.

She dragged me to the swimsuit section of the store, and I immediately sought out the garments that I was most comfortable with, like full bikini bottoms as tops that were sure to keep the girls secure and covered. Alice, as always, had a different idea, and pulled a strapped pair of cheeky bottoms and the matching top that looked like there was a definite possibility of someone would see some part of my nipple at some point in the day. She thrust the pieces at me and thrust me inside a dressing room, demanding that I change and show her, or else she was going to steal my clothes and walk out. I begrudgingly changed into the swimsuit and grumbled to myself as I tried to figure out how to slip on the bottoms.

Eventually, I figured it out, with a little coaching from Alice, and quickly pulled on the top, hooking it closed in the back. I looked at myself in the mirror and cringed at how much of my skin I could actually see. I suppose everything important was sufficiently covered, but I still didn't feel completely covered. The bottoms were fine, except for half of my ass was hanging out. It looked more like the underwear that I usually bought, except for the four straps that wrapped around my hips and hip crests, which I admittedly liked. The tip was like a regular bikini top, but the cups were a sheer mesh with just a strip of opaque fabric across my nipples. There was no padding, so I could already see the barbell jewelry poking through, and I'm sure getting the fabric wet would only worsen it.

"Bella! You better get your cute little butt out of there so I can see it on you," Alice demanded. I could hear the flats she was wearing tapping impatiently against the tiles floor of the shop. I huffed out a sigh and threw the door open, stepping out slightly for her to see. She squealed and hopped up and down while clapping her hands. "Oh, Bella, it's absolutely perfect. You're covered, but it's also naughty. I like it. We're getting it."

I tried to protest, but she simply pushed me back into the dressing room, ordering me to strip and then hand her the bathing suit pieces. I did as I was told, because I did not feel like facing Alice's wrath today. I heard her walk away as soon as I had handed her both pieces, and I knew she was on her way to go pay for it, despite even more of my protests. There was nothing I could do but throw a mini silent tantrum as I put my clothes back on and joined her at the door, a bag already in her hand.

All she said on our walk back to our building was, "You're welcome." There was a bright, conniving smile on her little face. I just grunted in response.

}ACH{

 _3:36 pm_

"Alice, I'm going to be getting wet. It's just going to get messed up!" I dodged her hands as she tried to get me sit in the chair at her vanity. She was trying to convince me to let her do my hair, even though I had no plans to take it out of the ponytail it was currently. "No makeup, either."

She pouted, crossing her arms over her chest. "At least let me put some mascara on you. It's waterproof." She held up the offending cosmetic.

I rolled my eyes and plunked myself in her chair. I only gave in so she would stop pouting like a four year old and shut up. She was being especially annoying for some reason. She had grumbled something about me "ruining her plans" earlier, but I had ignored her.

Alice ran the little silicon wand through my lashes, and then quickly slid some lip gloss over my lips, patting it in gently with her finger. I glared at her as she did so, but she just beamed at me innocently.

"There, was that so bad?" she demanded, stepping away from me once she was done.

"It's not that I mind makeup, you know that, Al," I sighed. "I just think it's unnecessary when I'm going to be slathering on sunscreen to protect my pasty complexion."

She waved me off. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever, just get changed, or we're going to be late."

I gave her a mock two finger salute and proceeded to strip out of my clothes. I huffed as I put on the bathing suit and covered it with a pair of denim shorts and an olive colored tank top. I shoved two beach towels and some sunblock into a bag for the two of us while Alice got changed. I went out into the living area and grabbed my fresh-baked brownies off of the counter where I had set them to cool earlier. I put the top on the glass pan and shoved it into the same bag with our towels. If there was one thing I had learned from living with Renee for a while, it was that you never showed up to someone's house without some sort of food offering. It was a good thing I liked to bake, because cookies or brownies were usually my go-to.

Before I could turn to head back to the room, Alice was emerging, locking our room behind her. Some of our suite mates had showed up during the week, and even though they seemed nice enough, I never trusted people I didn't know. She escorted me out of our unit and out of the building, tugging me in the direction of Rose's apartment at a brisk pace. For having such short legs, she sure did cover a lot of ground quickly. Three minutes before four pm, we were out in front of Rose's building, ringing the button that said 'Cullen/McCarty.' Rose quickly buzzed us up, sounding grateful that we were there.

Rose lived on the third floor, but her old building luckily had a functioning elevator, though it was pretty rickety and kind of looked like those grated ones that you saw in movies where people lived in huge brick buildings in New York. It was an experience, to say the least, considering we didn't have a whole lot of culture in tiny little Forks, Washington.

When we got up there, the door to her apartment was propped open, music streaming out into the hallway, and I hoped that their neighbors were younger and not crotchety old people. Some pretty hardcore rock music was blasting through a sound system of some sort, so nobody heard us when we walked in, though, Emmett saw us, since he was facing the door from his place in the kitchen. He grabbed a remote off the counter and turned down the volume of the music.

"Alice! Jailbait!" he bellowed in greeting, walking to gather us both in a crushing hug. I cringed at the nickname Edward had dubbed me that had apparently made its way to Emmett. "How are you guys settling in?" he asked as he took our bag from my shoulder.

I told him about the brownies in there before answering his question. I saw his eyes light up at the sight of the chocolatey dessert. "Good, Alice finally unpacked her last box this morning after we ran into Rose at the coffee shop." Alice threw a glare at me and stuck out her tongue. I smiled at her, which just pissed her off.

"So, Alice is the prissy one and Jailbait is the easy-going one?" Emmett joked. He went back into the kitchen, and started fussing with something on a pan. It smelled like he was adding rub to some sort of meat. I felt my stomach growl at the thought of food.

"Why do you keep calling Bella Jailbait?" Rose asked, her brow furrowed. She was in the kitchen, and she bumped Emmett with her hip as she searched through their fridge. She offered Alice and I beers, which we accepted. Luckily, it wasn't something gross, like Coors, and I didn't mind actually nursing it. Charlie had pretty cheap taste in beers, but I think it was just so he could make sure I wouldn't take any. I had learned pretty early on what the difference between good and bad beers were, and I knew that Alice's mom kept the good stuff in the house.

"Eddie dubbed her Jailbait since she's not eighteen yet, and it's kinda stuck in my head," he explained.

Alice shot me a look, and I knew it meant she had caught the fact that Edward and Emmett had been talking about me. While it gave me butterflies to know that he had talked about me to Emmett, I rolled my eyes at Alice to keep up the facade that I wasn't into Edward.

Just at that moment, though, the aforementioned person emerged from a hallway beside the kitchen, dressed only in a pair of swim trunks, his muscular, tattoo covered arm slung around the shoulder of a tall, tan, lean, statuesque blond with blue eyes and tits almost as big as Rose's. They were made more prominent by the ruffles on the cups of her barely-there bikini top. She was strutting around nothing but her bright pink bikini. Her fake tan was so distracting, that I didn't even have a chance to admire Edward's shirtless torso before he saw Alice and I standing near the baker's window that separated the kitchen from the living room.

Edward glanced at Alice and then me, giving us a curt nod in greeting. He separated himself from the model at his side and threw open the refrigerator, quickly snatching out a bottle of beer and popping it open on the counter edge. He leaned against the counter, and the blond leaned against the counter beside him, snuggling herself into his side. I couldn't help the flash of jealousy that invaded my stomach at seeing them so close together.

"Eddie, you aren't going to introduce me to your friends?" Irina whined, tugging on the band of his trunks to get his attention, like she was a toddler. Her nasally voice grated on my nerves, and I understood Rose's aversion to her brother's girlfriend.

I saw Rose scowl out of the corner of my eye, but she pressed the bottle to her lips to hide it. Edward grunted, and pointed the lip of his own bottle first in Alice's direction and then my own.

"Irina, that's Alice and her friend Jailbait," he introduced, and I grimaced at the continued use of the nickname. "Alice, Jailbait, this is my girlfriend, Irina."

I was seriously about two seconds away from punching Edward in the face, but I rolled my eyes instead. I wasn't going to give the satisfaction of knowing that I really despised his choice of name.

"It's nice to meet you," Alice chirped, playing nice. I just nodded my agreement and took another swig of the beer. I was beginning to think the grimace on my face was going to become permanent if I didn't arrange it into another expression soon.

"Hey, who gave Jailbait a beer?" Edward asked, his tone slightly mocking. "We could get in trouble for that shit."

I saw Rose roll her eyes. "Oh please, like anyone checks. And don't be a hypocrite, Edward. Don't act like you haven't been getting wasted since you were fourteen." I would always be grateful to Rose for coming to my defense when her brother was being an ass. I could see us having a long and beautiful friendship.

"Why do you keep calling her Jailbait?" Irina spoke up, running her finger through the smattering of hair on Edward's chest. I clenched my teeth together at the action. At least it wasn't a scowl. "That's obviously not her real name."

I heard Emmett snort as he finished doctoring up whatever meat he had. "You don't say? I thought her parents were stupid enough to name her Jailbait."

Edward scowled and elbowed Emmett in the ribs, which he got a glare for. Emmett apparently wasn't all that fond of Irina either. I liked Emmett just a little bit more.

"Her name's Bella," Rose amended, since no one had actually answered Irina's question.

"Edward just thinks it's funny because I'm not eighteen yet," I added. "Although, I'm not quite sure why that's his concern." I mumbled that part more to myself than to the rest of the room.

Luckily, it didn't seem like anyone had heard me, except maybe Alice, who I noticed had a smirk on her lips. "Aren't you in college? How aren't you eighteen yet?" Irina asked, sounded holier-than-thou all of a sudden.

"My birthday's in a couple weeks." I was already over this conversation. I didn't owe Fake Tan an explanation.

"Actually, it's in nine days," Alice piped up. She rested her empty beer bottle on the counter. "You need to figure out what you wanna do, B."

"Classes start the next day, I don't really wanna go out or anything," I argued. Alice knew I wasn't the biggest fan of my birthday. Something about a whole day dedicated to my existence just didn't sit well with me. Maybe it was the attention it garnered me whenever someone found out it was that fateful day. I wasn't quite sure, but I tried to avoid celebration if at all possible. Growing up with Alice made that a little difficult, but we had agreed that she would keep all festivities discreet that day. We usually just went and got our nails done and watched a movie or something. I preferred low key if we were going to do anything.

"We can got to this club that I like the night before," Rose offered, looking pretty excited about the prospect of going out. "You won't be eighteen yet, but you're hot, so the bouncer isn't going to ask."

Irina made a choking sound, and it looked like she was pressing her lips together in a hard line. We all looked at her in question.

"Are you okay?" Alice asked. Her voice didn't sound like she was actually concerned, but it was more that it was socially expected for her to ask. I could tell Alice wasn't Fake Tan's biggest fan. Was anybody, beside Edward? Although, the bored expression on his face told that maybe he didn't like her presence very much, either. Maybe it was right of me to assume earlier that he just kept her around because she was an easy fuck.

 _A girl can hope._

"Can we talk more about JB's birthday outside?" Emmett asked. "These babies are ready to go on the grill."

I was about to ask what the hell JB was, but I realized it was a shortened version of Jailbait. I rolled my eyes, trailing behind Emmett and Rose as we exited the apartment, Alice's finger wrapped around one of my belt loops as she traipsed behind me. We all helped carry out the things we'd need for dinner. No one wanted to travel up and down the elevator later on because we had forgotten something.

The courtyard of their apartment complex was beautiful. The pool was sparkling blue, and it was thankfully empty, meaning we'd have the place to ourselves. There were two grills by what looked like the pool house. Emmett quickly set up shop at one of them, lighting the burners and scraping off old char from the grate. Rose led Alice and I over to lounge chairs, stripping off her shirt and shorts before laying out. Rose had a killer body, which was making me a little self-conscious about getting down to just my bikini. Not to mention, Fake Tan had her eyes trained on me from where she was perched on the steps of the pool, Edward standing above her. I could have sworn she was glaring at me, but I reasoned that it was just because of the sun in her eyes.

Alice stepped out of her little blue sundress to reveal her simple black bikini, which just further emphasized her shocking blue eyes. Alice was petite and avoided physical activity at all costs, but her mother had blessed her with a fast metabolism and other good genes, because she pretty much looked perfect. I groaned when she goaded me into disrobing, saying that I was going to get awful tan lines. She also lowered her large sunglasses and peered at me over them, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively at me. I knew this was her reminder that she had bought me the bikini as a way to garner Edward's attention and make him squirm, but I wasn't so sure that I wanted it now, especially with Fake Tan already throwing daggers at me, for some reason. Alice's gaze turned into a glare and I finally gave in, rolling my eyes as I pulled my tank top over my head.

Rose wolf whistled beside me, smirking at me as she shielded her eyes from the sun. "Woo, Bella! Take it off!"

Emmett joined in, giving a loud round of whoops from where he was watching by the grill. He was beaming at me in good nature. I had a feeling Emmett was the type of guy to push the boundaries of his relationships, and Rose was right along side him to just to egg him on. God, what a perfect couple.

I wanted so badly to grab up my tank top and pull it back over my body, but I caught sight of Irina's pointed glare, and a new sense of resolve flooded through me. Fuck her judging eyes. Just because I wasn't a fucking Amazon woman and faked tanned to near Doritos status didn't mean I wasn't just as hot as she was, plus, I was willing to bet my tuition that her rack was just as fake as the tan. At least mine were real.

I stared back at her as I undid my shorts and then shoved them down my legs, kicking them to the side to join my discarded shirt. I smirked and she scowled. So, she didn't like me for some reason. I didn't fucking care.

As I turned and leaned over to lay out a towel on the lounger, I heard a choked groan coming from Irina's direction. I whipped around to see Edward squeezing his eyes shut and pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers. My brows furrowed, and I caught Irina glaring at her boyfriend and then smack him in the leg. I turned back to see Alice and Rose laughing, their shoulders shaking with the effort to keep it under control. I was so confused about what had just happened.

"Mission accomplished," Alice muttered under her breath as I laid out beside her. I just glanced at her to see a smug smirk pulling at her lips.

"If the mission was to make Edward cum in his pants, I'd say you're about halfway there," Rose supplied, her own smirk contorting her face. I couldn't help but gape at her. That was her brother she was talking about!

"No, it was just to torture him, maybe give Bella here a little confidence in her ability to bring the male species to their knees," Alice corrected. My jaw dropped further. How was she being so blunt and open with Rose. I repeat, this is her brother we were talking about!

"Oh, well, yes, mission accomplished." She nodded resolutely once, officially ending the conversation.

I was still astounded.

}ACH{

 _4:52 pm_

Emmett finally announced that the steaks and ribs were finished cooking, and I finally vacated my spot on the lounger. After about ten minutes of laying there with Rose and Alice, I completely let go of my inhibitions and let myself enjoy the late afternoon sun. My skin was warm and was showing signs of the slightest tan, which I was pretty pleased about. There really wasn't an opportunity to get tan naturally in Forks, so Alice and I were pretty pasty. I was hoping to amend that by the end of the summer.

While we had been waiting for food to be finished, several other people had meandered into the pool area, all of them apparently friends with the Cullens and Emmett. Some were neighbors while others were people they knew from school. The only person I had spoken to beside Rose and Alice was one of Emmett's friends that worked with him at the shop, Jake. He was a big guy, almost as big as Emmett himself, with obvious Native Indian heritage. His tattoos were sparse compared to Emmett and Edward, but he had small gauges in his ears and a piercing through his bottom lip, which he often pulled on with his teeth. Not that I was paying attention to his mouth, or anything.

Okay, honestly, Jake was incredibly attractive with all his muscles and incredibly white smile and the way he rubbed the back of his neck, causing said muscles to bunch in the most delicious way. I didn't know his relationship status or if he was even straight, but if I couldn't have Edward, Jake was definitely a good candidate. We talked easily about about mine and Alice's trip to Boston, and he discovered that I was a photographer, mostly thanks to Alice. I told him about the request Emmett had made about taking photos of their work and he expressed his joy toward seeing me around often. We exchanged numbers, since I did actually enjoy talking to Jake. Even if he wasn't a possible love prospect, I had a feeling he was going to be a great friend.

When Alice and I moved to make our plates, a straggler walked through the gates, loping over to envelope Emmett in a manly hug, bumping shoulders. He was pretty much completely opposite of Emmett. He was thin and lanky, his bare torso tan and sun kissed, and his sandy blond hair was nearly brushing his shoulders. He had a lazy smile that revealed his sparkly white teeth. Not an inch of his skin that I could see was marked by ink, and there didn't appear to be any holes in his body. He was just as attractive as the rest of the men at this little cookout, but in a sort of laid-back surfer way.

Apparently, Alice was into the surfer look, because she just stared at the guy for about two minutes straight as he stood talking to Emmett. I'm pretty sure I saw drool dripping from the corner of her mouth, down her chin. I actually had to snap my fingers in front of her face to get her to break out of her daze.

"Earth to Alice, come in, Alice," I called mockingly as she came to. I chuckled as she glared at me. "Where did you go?"

"Into a land where there was nothing but a luxurious bed and that blond hottie over there, naked, spread eagle as I had my wicked way with him." She was completely serious, and I couldn't help but cringe. Surprisingly, I was the experienced one in this friendship, but I was still shocked at her explicit description. I mean, I had no problem discussing my sexuality, but holy shit. Alice sure knew how to spring that on a girl.

"Jesus Christ, Al," I breathed out on a laugh. I shook my head at her, and she had the decency at least to blush at her outburst.

"Oh, don't pretend you haven't told me all about your sexual exploits with Riley, B. You've described to me acts that I had never even heard about until you told me."

I smirked. "I didn't even know about them until I was doing them. Riley was definitely adventurous. And the things he could do with his tongue…." I groaned. Seriously, best sex in my life so far.

The same choked groan from earlier in the day sounded behind me in line, and I blushed, immediately recognizing who was behind me. I refused to turn around and face him, but Alice smirked, confirming that I had just talked about oral sex in front of Edward, a guy I hardly knew. I definitely did not know him well enough to be talking about oral sex around him, especially as it pertained to me.

 _God dammit._

I made to quickly pick back up the conversation with Alice about the blond guy she had been fantasizing about, but as I looked up, there he was, right in front of Alice, who had just finished putting food on her plate. I think my jaw dropped at his close proximity and his sudden appearance right after we had been discussing him, but I made sure to snap my jaw shut as quickly as possible. I just quietly listened from a few feet away as him and Alice talked.

I was far enough away to give them their space, but I was close enough to hear snippets of their conversations. As a best friend, you learned to give your girl her space, but also be there in case something started to go wrong, so you could be there to swoop in if need be. Alice and I had definitely perfected this maneuver over the years.

I could hear the man introducing himself as Jasper Whitlock, a junior at the college. He had known Emmett when he was still going to school there and was now friends with Rose as well. Alice was able to pick her jaw up off the floor long enough to reciprocate the greeting and ask where he was from originally. I detected a bit of a Southern accent, and I was not surprised when he said he was originally from Texas. Alice definitely had a weak spot for accents.

Being the great friend that I am, I ate as I discreetly listened in, making sure Alice never said anything that said I should save her from the situation, but, as it was, she seemed to be yoking it up, giggling and tucking her hair behind her ear coyly. It was a total power play, and I just chuckled quietly at her demure facade. Alice was a great actress, and this was her go to move for making men do whatever she wanted. The piercings in her face meant nothing to men when she was acting all shy and giggly, when it normally meant everybody around her scurried out of her way, because she was intimidating at five foot even.

When I determined that Alice was comfortable, I stepped over to excuse myself and let her know where I was going to be, just in case she needed me.

I saddled up next to her after throwing away my finished plate. I smiled down at her and then up at this Jasper fellow.

"Al, I'm going to head inside to wash up and grab another beer. Do you want one?" I asked. It was my silent way of telling her that I trusted Jasper, at least just a little bit.

"No, I'm good," she shook her head, smiling up at me. "This is Jasper, by the way. Jasper, this is my best friend, Bella Swan."

Emmett popped into the conversation at just that moment, and I knew it wouldn't be good. "Everyone calls her Jailbait, though, or JB for short," he said, beaming between the three of us.

I just rolled my eyes before stalking off. I could faintly hear Jasper asking about the nickname before I closed the gate to the pool behind me. I shivered a little as I entered the air conditioned apartment complex. I had neglected to put my clothes back on over my swimsuit, so I just gritted my teeth through the chilly elevator ride. The cold air made my nipples harden, and my assumption from earlier in the day had been correct: the barbells were very prominent. When I finally got to the apartment, I felt my body relax as I realized the air wasn't so intense in there.

My first stop was to the bathroom in order to wash my hands of the barbecue sauce that had been on the ribs, and then I went to the fridge, quickly finding a bottle of Stella Artois. I had been bent over to look in the fridge, so I straightened up and closed the door.

I nearly screamed as I came face to face—well, face to chest—with a very broody-looking Edward.

* * *

 **There is chapter three, hope you guys liked it. We got to see more of Edward and we met Irina. Trust me, I have so many plans for this** **story. We'll get to see a fuller extent of Dickward next chapter. He's definitely a doozy in this story. But I love him.**

 **As always, I very much appreciate your reviews. I will answer any questions and take into consideration any ideas you guys may have. I love hearing anything you guys have to say, and I'm doing a good job so far of responding to the reviews I can, excluding the ones sent anonymously, of course. Hopefully I can stick with that.**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	4. I Want to Sex You Up

**Hello! I am back with chapter four. I'm proud of myself for the once a week posts so far, not gonna lie. Hopefully I can keep it up.**

 **You guys have been responding so well to this story, and it makes me feel all warm and cuddly inside ^.^ I love hearing from you guys, so thank you so much!**

 **Now, on with the show.**

* * *

 **Chapter Four**

 **I Want to Sex You Up**

 _I nearly screamed as I came face to face—well, face to chest—with a very broody-looking Edward._

The gasp the spilled from my lips was audible and echoed in the quiet of the apartment. My hand flew to my chest, trying to physically calm my erratic heartbeat. Luckily, I was able to keep a grasp on the bottle of beer during the little fright Edward had caused.

"Holy shit, are you a fucking vampire or something? Warn a girl, will you?" I panted, more flustered by his close proximity than surprised at his sudden appearance. He was so close, I could feel the heat permeating off his body in waves. And I was assaulted by the intoxicating scent of whatever cologne he wore mixed with the faint smell of cigarettes. I was also very close to that naughty little piece of jewelry in his nipple. I wanted to run my tongue over it and see what his reaction would be. Was it sensitive? My curious mind wanted to know.

My sexual thoughts caused a warm sensation to settle in my crotch, and I was pretty sure I'd need to get in the pool in order to hide the wet spot I was almost positive was forming. Not to mention, my arousal showed in other areas of my body, and I could feel my neck and cheeks getting warm and flush as my nipples puckered. Hopefully, he wouldn't notice that.

Just as the thought crossed my mind, Edward's eyes dropped to my breasts, zeroing in on my aroused nipples and the obvious marks of the matching jewelry. I watched as his tongue peeked out to lick his lips. And if that move wasn't thigh clench-worthy enough, the ball of a barbell poked through, sliding along his moist, pink flesh.

 _Jesus Christ, I am actually going to combust. His tongue is pierced. I might die._

My mind quickly flickered to images of Edward's head between my legs, my fingers gripping his wild bronze hair, and feeling the piece of cool metal tapping against my clit. My eyes nearly rolled back at the thought.

 _Fuck, get it together, Swan._

Finally, Edward acknowledged that I had asked him a question about a minute before.

"Not a vampire," he denied, shaking his head. His eyes slowly came up and connected with mine, nearly knocking the wind out of me. I had forgotten exactly how dazzling his eyes were, and I found myself getting lost in them. "I didn't mean to startle you, Jailbait."

I actually did groan out loud, but it was from frustration, and not of the sexual sort. "Please stop calling me that. I'm not actually _that_ young."

"Has your eighteenth birthday passed?" he asked, one of his strangely perfect eyebrows quirking up.

"No, it's in a few d—"

"Then you're still jailbait, Jailbait," he interrupted. I wanted to rip his great looking hair out of his even better looking head.

I was pretty fed up at this point. My frustration at him mixed with the obvious sexual tension I was experiencing, caused me to snap.

"What does it even matter to you? It's not like my age pertains to you. Are you planning to sleep with me? The answer is no, so my being "jailbait" is of no importance!"

His pretty pink lips tugged up into a cocky smirk.

 _Fuck, what did I do to deserve this?_

Edward took a step closer to me, his body only a few inches away from mine. My breath caught in my chest. I was a little overwhelmed at his close proximity. He leaned down and his lips were so close to my ear, I could feel them brush against the shell of it. Then I nearly passed out from holding my breath for so long.

"What makes you think I'm not planning to sleep with you, Jailbait? Maybe I'm just waiting until I won't actually go to jail after you scream my name." I swear, I felt the tip of his tongue gently caress my ear.

If I had been flushed before, it was ten times worse, now. His voice was so rich and smooth, and the low murmur he had dropped into was things my fantasies were made of. I wanted to fan myself with a paper plate or something, but he was much too close and I didn't have a plate. Plus, it would be further proof that his words had affected me, and I was not about to give him the satisfaction. I also needed to come up with some sort of rebuttal relatively soon, otherwise he'd also know he flustered me into stupidity.

"I'm pretty sure your girlfriend wouldn't appreciate you fucking anyone besides her."

"I don't know, Irina might actually want to join."

I wanted to scoff, because Irina very obviously wasn't my biggest fan, considering the way she had been glaring at me all day, but I wasn't going to tell him that.

"Sorry, I'm not into threesomes, Cullen. I'm a single child. I never learned how to share."

"You're right, Jailbait. You look a little bit too innocent to be into something kinky like that. What are in to? Missionary one day a week at nine pm right before bed?" His voice was almost a sneer now.

Was that really how he saw me? As some vanilla little saint who barely enjoyed sex? I wanted to laugh. So, I did.

"Oh, you'd like to know, wouldn't you? The things I'm into, the things I've done?"

"You mean you've actually had sex before?"

"I'd say more than you have, but your reputation precedes you. Is there a girl at school that you haven't fucked?"

His smirk took up its residence on his face, and I wanted to kiss the shit out of him to wipe it off.

 _Reign it in, Bella. We're pissed, remember?_

 _But we're also very sexually frustrated. And he's here half naked, smelling like the most delicious thing to ever grace me, and looking like absolute sin._

 _True._

"You. But I plan to amend that."

My heart fluttered a little bit and my girly bits fluttered a lot a bit. I pulled myself together, though. "I don't know what's going on down there after so many girls," I said, gesturing toward the general area of his penis. I purposely kept my eyes on his, though. "I don't feel like contracting gonorrhea, so no thanks."

"I don't fuck without a condom. I'm clean." He seemed to be a little upset that I had insinuated he had an STD, which was kind of hilarious.

I shrugged and tried to pass around him, but he blocked me in with his chest, making me run right into his searing hot, silky smooth skin. I wanted to lick him, but I barely restrained myself.

"No offense, but I don't actually plan on finding out if you're clean or not. I'll take your word for it, Edward." I was done with this conversation.

I could tell that he was going to say something, probably in protest, but I was saved by the bell. Although, this bell wasn't someone I really wanted to be around, considering I was in a weird position with the object of her affections.

"Eddie!" Irina's annoying voice called out through the apartment, and the door closed behind her a moment later. I took a few steps back from Edward, putting as much space as possible between the two of us so Irina didn't have more of a reason to keep glaring at me any time I was unfortunate enough to be in her presence.

I took a casual swig of my beer as she rounded the corner into the kitchen.

"There you are, baby," she purred, running her hands across his exposed shoulders. I glared at her hand, hoping it would catch on fire, but I composed my face into an indifferent mask just before her eyes locked on mine. Her glare was much more menacing. She didn't speak to me though.

 _I wonder if she can read your very dirty thoughts about her boyfriend? Maybe that's the reason she appeared out of thin air all of a sudden._

"Sorry, I just ran into Bella up here. We were talking about school." The lie that came through his lips sounded so natural, and I had to wonder how many times he had lied to her before.

"You go to UMass? Are you a freshman?" She spit out the last word like she was a vampire trying to utter the Lord's name.

"I am," I answered tersely.

"What's your major, or are you undeclared?" The smile she plastered on her face was supposed to come off as welcoming, I think, but it was looking a little like a painted on clown smile.

"I'm a journalism major with a minor in photography," I said, completely monotone. I felt like I had described my major at least a dozen times over the last few days. "What's your major?"

"Hospitality."

I tried not to, but I actually choked on the sip of beer I had just taken. I barely stopped it from sputtering out of my mouth, but I cupped my hand over my lips just in case. The liquid was barely in my throat before I couldn't help the laughter that was bubbling from my chest. Irina just stared at me, her eyes set in a steely glare once again, and Edward was watching me with a small, amused smirk on his lips. Apparently, he saw the irony of this situation as well.

I was finally able to escape this extremely awkward situation when Irina demanded that Edward pay attention to her and go help her "find something" in his bedroom. I had to restrain myself from vomiting as I scurried out of the kitchen and eventually out of the apartment. When I finally made it back down to the pool, Alice and Jasper were sitting next to each other on lounge chairs, seeming deep in conversation and making moony eyes at each other. I couldn't help but smile at the lovestruck expressions on both of their faces.

Rose was quick to come over and corral me to where her and Emmett were standing, talking to Jake.

"What's up?" I greeted, meeting Jake's and Emmett's eyes briefly.

"Hey, JB, we were just discussing our job offer to you," Emmett said, slinging an arm across my shoulders.

"Yeah?" I wondered rather noncommittally. I really couldn't care less about working for Emmett, but I wouldn't say no if he offered it to me. I liked him, even with the constant overuse of my apparent new nickname.

"Mhmm," he hummed. "We decided that the job is yours if you want it. We'll pay you and everything. We figured it would be good for our shop so customers can see good quality photos of our work, and it would help you get your name out there a little bit. What do you say?"

I shrugged, a smile on my face. "Sure, I'd love to, Emmett."

All three of them expressed their joy at my acceptance, and then they began to talk logistics. By the time Alice and I left that night, we had decided that I would come into the shop when I had free time between classes and on weekends. I'd get a percentage of the cost of the piece, and I'd get paid hourly on the weekends, since it was their busiest times, and I'd most likely answer phones and things like that, too. Emmett asked me to come in the next day after I was done with orientation stuff so he could get a contract for me. I agreed and told him I'd call him before I came in as Alice and I left.

When we got back to our dorm that night, Alice gushed to me all about Jasper and how amazing and cute he was, and how he gave her butterflies. She admitted that he was a little bit shy when it came to flirting, and she had been purposely a little more forward to get him to squirm a little. I couldn't help but laugh and shake my head at her, amazed but not surprised at her ability to make even a grown man uncomfortable.

I was not so amused when she turned on me and asked me about what had happened with Edward, since her apparent psychic abilities had informed her that I had run into him when I went back up to the apartment to get myself a drink. I had a permanent blush on my face as I recounted to her what all had happened, not leaving out a single gory detail.

"He licked your ear?" she asked, half perplexed and half smug. "That's pretty hot, B."

"He has a girlfriend! He can't go around licking girls ears!" I protested.

"No, but he can lick _your_ ear," she argued, wiggling her eyebrows at me suggestively. She turned sober rather quickly. "I don't think he's much into Irina, anyways. He's very distant when they're together."

I shrugged. "Maybe that's just the way they are with each other."

Alice shook her head, her short black locks whipping around. "No, I was talking to Rose and Emmett. They said he used to be pretty into her, but now he's been pushing her away, not that she really lets him. Rose called her a clingy bitch."

"Well, in any case, they're together right now. I'm not gonna mess with that."

"Why not?" she demanded. "He's totally into you! And I can see the way you react to him. The sexual tension is palpable. Just home wreck it."

"I am a lot of things, but I am not a home-wrecker, Mary Alice. Besides, I think he was just trying to get to me. I doubt he's actually into me."

She gave me a knowing look as she gathered her things to go take a shower. She didn't say anything more as she stepped out of the room. I threw myself back onto my bed and huffed out a breath in order to rid myself of the day.

}ACH{

 _September 8, 2015_

 _10:22 am_

Our first day of orientation had been going relatively smooth, considering the school was just letting us roam around and do whatever we felt so inclined to do. Alice and I had stopped for coffee and croissants in a cafe on campus for breakfast before we went anywhere. We met two other girls who lived in our building while we were sitting down at a table for two. Alice overheard them talking about events for the day, and politely (not really) put herself in their conversation to settle the questions they had. They introduced themselves as Heidi and Victoria, and much like Alice and me, they're childhood friends from Ohio who decided to live together on campus. Heidi was a psychology major and Victoria informed us that she's undecided, but she had prospects of becoming an education major.

We talked for a while about how our time in town so far had been, and Alice mentioned meeting the Cullens and Emmett. It seemed that the other girls had heard of them, but hadn't seen or met them yet. Then we made plans to attend the orientation week commencement at ten-thirty to get a good look at the counselors. The school chose one upperclassmen from nearly every major to be a source of information and support for the students in those majors. We were allowed to come to any one of them throughout the rest of the week if we needed anything. No one knew beforehand who the counselors were, not that it really mattered to us, since this was our first time on campus.

So, after finishing up breakfast, we headed to the lawn where a stage and speakers were set up. A group of people in shirts the blue color of the school are gathered near the right side of the stage, talking to one another. I didn't pay much attention to the mass of people, and I instead looked at the rest of the students gathering around me, taking in the size of the freshman class. There had to be more people there than the entire student body at the high school Alice and I attended. It was just a bit overwhelming.

Alice suddenly leaned into me to murmur into my ear. "Hey, I think I see Edward. There's a tall guy with his weird bronze hair over with the counselors."

I looked to where she was pointing, and sure enough, there stood Edward, taller than most everyone else around him, wearing that strange light blue colored shirt that seemed out of place on him. Just imagining his tattoos and piercings underneath that seemingly innocent shirt with the school's logo on the back made me chuckle a little bit. He was standing by a girl with dark brown hair and square glasses that wasn't in the counselor shirt. She obviously knew Edward by her relaxed demeanor and the kind smile that stretched across her face as he talked. Edward seemed comfortable with her, as well, given the relaxed stance of his broad shoulders and the breezy grin he had when she spoke.

I was so completely lost in my analysis of Edward, that it took Alice a few tries to get my attention.

"Earth to Bella," she chuckled, snapping her fingers in front of my face. I blinked and tried to focus my eyes on the little pixie by my side, taking in the smirk that she currently wore. "In a bit of an Edward trance, huh?"

"Shut up," I muttered. I knew she was about to make some other snide comment, but I was saved by the PA system powering on and a woman's voice coming through to announce the introduction of the counselors. I was only paying half attention as different people walked onto the stage until Edward's name was called. He strode up onto the stage with little effort, a sly but welcoming grin on his face the whole time. His eyes were covered in a pair of black sunglasses, hiding his dazzling green eyes from the crowd.

"Holy shit, that boy is hot," Heidi muttered from next to me. I was about to agree, but Victoria commented before I could say anything.

"I would not mind seeing him stretched out on my bed."

I felt a surge of…I'm not sure… _jealousy?…_ toward Victoria in that moment, the emotion making it's way past my mental filter.

"Not gonna happen," I replied, feeling the urge to slap my hand over my mouth the second I finished the sentence. I heard Alice snicker on my other side, and I rushed to amend my statement. "He has a girlfriend."

I could hear the pout in Victoria's voice as she said, "Damn, I hope she appreciates the masterpiece she gets to have her way with."

The urge to make another comment to Victoria was interrupted by Alice's squeal by my side. I wasn't sure what her reaction was to, until I spotted Jasper walking across the stage to stand beside Edward, apparently the counselor for the psychology majors. I rolled my eyes in good nature at her reaction to her new love interest. I'm sure I wasn't going to be seeing much of my best friend in the coming week. I would just have to find Jasper in order to find her.

Heidi made some comment about getting to know her new counselor, and possibly his bedroom, and I could feel the heat emanating off of Alice as her blood boiled. I thought I was about to witness steam come out of her ears, so I placed my hand on her shoulder, which seemed to cool her down.

No one else was really important in the line-up of counselors. I learned that mine was a tall, pretty blond named Lauren who was a senior here, and the counselor for the photography department was a very hipster-looking guy named Eric. He was every cliche anyone could think of when they heard the word "photographer" and I resented him a little bit for giving us a bad rep.

The amount of counselors was dwindling down, and I was about ready to take off, when a name that I wasn't expecting to hear any time soon was announced as the last counselor took the stage. A face I hadn't seen in two years shone out at the crowd, his tawny locks flopping down onto his forehead in their mussed array. His smile was bright and charming, as always. He had put on a bit of muscle since the last time we had seen each other, and it looked good on him. True to Alice's investigation-slash-stalking, his arms were smattered in a few tattoos—nowhere near to how many Edward had—and there was a single piercing through the side of his bottom lip. Two years had done the boy well, that's for sure.

"Oh wow, Riley is the computer science counselor," Alice acknowledged.

"Do you guys know him?" Victoria asked, her eyes roaming over his body as she licked her lips. I think she had a bit of a boy problem.

"We went to high school together," I told her, being as vague as possible. I wasn't sure if Riley wanted other people to know that I actually knew him quite well.

Alice evidently didn't have the same idea. "Bella and Riley dated for a year before he went to college."

"Please tell me he's as good in bed as he looks," Victoria sighed.

I rolled my eyes, and I wasn't going to answer, but Alice took the liberty of answering for me again. "Just being near them when they were together was like being in a porno. The sexual energy in the air was thick."

Victoria fanned herself. "You're not talking to him anymore, though, right Bella?"

I was slightly surprised that she would even have the decency to ask. "No, have at it."

}ACH{

 _7:15 pm_

Later that evening, after Alice and I got tired of going to activities all over the campus and we ate dinner, I decided to head over and check out the school's gym and work-out rooms. I knew that we were pretty well equipped in the weight rooms, considering we were a Division 1 school, so I was excited to see what all we had. Tonight, I only planned on running on the treadmills and maybe trying out the ellipticals, but it would be a good chance to scope everything out.

I told Alice where I was going to be as I changed into more comfortable clothes and grabbed a water bottle. She scrunched her nose up at my plans but told me to have fun anyways. I couldn't help but laugh at her intense aversion to anything physical that didn't include power walking through malls on Black Friday.

When I got to the gym, I was impressed by it's quality of equipment and how clean and organized everything was. It was almost like stepping into a 24 Hour Fitness or something equally fancy. There were a few people already there, using the weight equipment or sitting on benches. Only one of the five treadmills was being used, so I hopped on the one at the end and started off at a light jog. I pressed my earbuds into my ears and listened to some classical music as I ran. It was a strange music choice for the gym, but I found that it helped me concentrate on my breathing and not the burning that would soon take place in my legs.

I had been running for about ten minutes, already a little past the mile mark, in the middle of watching a rerun of What Not to Wear on the TV screens mounted to the walls, when there was a tap on my shoulder. I blinked and tore my eyes away from the screen, taking one earbud out in the process. I turned my head to the free space on my right, and was surprised by the person I found there.

"Riley!" I gasped. He smiled at me, the one I had become so accustomed to my sophomore year of high school. I turned to shut off the treadmill and hopped down to stand beside him.

"Hey, B, how are you?" he asked, his smile never leaving. It was contagious, so I couldn't help but smile back at him.

"I'm great, how are you?" I was slightly out of breath from my run, and I tried to control my breathing a little better as he responded.

"I'm really good, actually." His eyes trailed up and down my body, but it was more of a casual perusal than the creepy check out that guys usually did. Riley and I had been best friends at one point, so his quick appraisal was familiar. "You look really good. You've grown up a lot. There's no more baby fat in your cheeks." He smirked and lightly pinched at the skin on my face.

I brushed him off as I laughed. "Yeah, two years will do that to a person. I'm not fifteen anymore, Riley."

"I'll say," he chuckled. "You're eighteenth birthday is in a week."

My eyebrows raised in surprise. "You remember my birthday?"

"Of course I do. "Your fifteenth birthday was pretty fun, or do you not remember?" The smirk on his face was sly now, and I couldn't help but blush as I remembered the day.

It had been the beginning of my sophomore year, and Riley and I had been dating for a few months already. On my birthday, Riley had planned to take me out to dinner and maybe catch a movie or go hang out down at La Push afterward. So, before dinner, I went over to his house to hang out and do some homework. His parents weren't home, as usual due to their busy work schedules and a charity event they were attending that night in Seattle. The evening had started off innocently enough, with us just lying in his bed and talking. But talking soon turned to kissing, and kissing turned to touching, and soon clothes were gone, and next thing I knew, Riley was asking me if I was sure I wanted this. I had assured him that I was ready, and that was the night that I lost my virginity. I had anticipated some pain, which came from the initial penetration, since Riley was pretty well endowed, but after that, everything was perfect. Riley kept it pretty tame the first time, but the subsequent two times that night were amped up a little bit. Needless to say, we didn't leave his room until ten the next morning. I had to make an excuse to Charlie that day that I had spent the night at Alice's house. Luckily, Charlie didn't ask too many questions.

"Oh, I definitely remember," I muttered, ducking my head and laughing at my own embarrassment. "That night was a lot of fun."

"It definitely was," he agreed, the smirk still on his face. "Anyway, are you doing anything for your birthday?"

I shrugged. "I'm not sure. It's on a Sunday, so probably not. Alice might drag me out to do something."

"Well, maybe we can do something the day before. Or the weekend after," he suggested. "I'm sure Alice would like to see what the city has to offer. Figure out where she can drag you the next time she wants to go out."

"You wanna do something for my birthday?" I was a little confused. We hadn't spoken in two years, beside his Facebook message last week.

"Why do you keep questioning me?" he chuckled. "I'm still your friend, B. I liked spending time with you, even if we weren't having sex at the time."

The damned blush rose to my cheeks again. "Well, alright then. I'll ask Alice about it, and I'll let you know."

He stuck his hand out. "Give me your phone. I got a new one after I moved out."

I handed him my cell phone and he quickly programmed his number in and sent himself a text from it. He gave me another smile as he handed my phone back to me.

"I'll see you around, B. It was really good to see you again. I missed you." I wasn't expecting him to, but he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around me in a hug. I hesitated for a moment before reciprocating, and I felt that familiar sense of comfort and safety that I had when I was with Riley. He still smelled the same, too, and I couldn't help but inhaling just a little.

We parted ways, and I walked as calmly as I could back to my dorm. Alice wasn't in the room when I got there, so I quickly gathered stuff to shower and headed into the bathroom. I didn't want to tell Alice about my run in with Riley just yet; I wanted some time to think back on what just happened and come to terms with it myself. Hopefully my shower allotted me enough time to actually do that.

Seeing and speaking to Riley for the first time in a few years had definitely been an experience. He was the same old Riley, with his kind disposition and his incredibly good looks, with a few little quirks thrown in, like the new tattoos and piercings, which had done amazing things to his appearance. I, apparently, had a real thing for guys with tattoos.

The more I thought about it, the more I figured that it wouldn't hurt to get to know Riley again. I didn't necessarily want to date him again, since that ship had long sailed, but we were pretty good friends in high school, and I'd be more than happy to continue being friends in college. We had gotten along really well, sexy times aside, and he was a pretty close second to Alice, once upon a time. I had genuinely missed his company when he moved away. We could hang out and be friends again, and everything would be good. He didn't seem to have any intentions beside friendship when we spoke. But what if he thought this was a way of inviting a sexual aspect of our relationship? Would I agree to it if he asked?

Honestly, I probably would, as long as there would be no romantic attachment involved. Lord knew I was extremely sexually frustrated from Edward's presence, and since I was working in his shop now, there was a good chance it was just going to continue, and I wasn't sure my ovaries could stand to be denied any type of sexual activity. If Riley was there and willing, and we both had an understanding that nothing beyond sex was going to happen between us, why shouldn't I take advantage of it? I'd be pretty stupid not to, honestly.

When I got out of the shower, Alice was back in our room, scrolling through a window open on her computer. She threw me a greeting over her shoulder as I quickly changed into some comfy clothes. I was deliberating what I should tell her about my run in with Riley when she spoke up.

"So, Rose and Emmett are definitely down to do something for your birthday. I've been looking up clubs and places to do things. Oh, and Rose invited us over tomorrow afternoon for lunch before you go to the shop."

"Just the three of us?" I asked, plopping down into the chair next to her.

Alice shook her head. "No, Em and Edward will be there, too. Rose said Irina is otherwise disposed, thank God."

The thought of being around Edward when Irina wasn't there made me both excited and completely unnerved. I'd get to ogle him discreetly as much as I wanted without the menacing eyes of his much too intuitive girlfriend, but there was a good possibility that some weird thing like what happened at the barbecue would happen again, and my psyche wasn't prepared for that clusterfuck so soon after the initial incident. Not to mention, if he did something like that again, I may not have enough resolve to not do all those dirty things that I had been thinking up in my mind. Somehow, I felt like that wouldn't go over well.

"Oh, that should be fun," I commented, trying to keep the trepidation out of my voice.

Alice smirked at me, giving me a knowing look. "You do realize I'm just about to amp up Operation: Make Edward Cum in His Pants, right? All these opportunities are presenting themselves for you to really get under his skin, and I just have to take them. It would be a crime not to. Ooh! And when we go out on Saturday for your birthday? It'll be ten times better, because you'll be so close, but not close enough for him. It'll be great!" She let out a cackle that sounded just a tiny bit deranged. I worried about her, sometimes.

"Why are you hell bent on messing with Edward?"

"Because it's a lovely form of amusement for the rest of us, and because you both refuse to admit that you're into each other."

"Alice, we've known each other for a few days. We don't know each other. And he has a girlfriend, for the hundredth time."

She rolled her eyes at me. "I know you better than you know you, B. And Edward is like an open book. Plus, I get insider information from Rose and Emmett."

I shook my head and rubbed at my temples. "Alice. Just leave it. I'll go along with whatever weird ass plan you have to get under Edward's skin, or whatever, but nothing beyond that is happening. This is just for a little fun."

She nodded in agreement, but there was a look on her face that I knew all too well from years of being best friends with her. It was a look that meant she was agreeing to appease me, but she had bigger, better plans that she was not going to let me in on, if she had it her way. And Alice always got her way.

}ACH{

 _September 9th, 2015_

 _12:24 pm_

Rose answered the door for Alice and I when we knocked on the apartment door after our orientation event that morning. I hadn't run into Edward or Riley, so it had been an okay day so far, but I knew it was going to get weird. I hadn't had a chance to tell Alice about the Riley thing last night, so I was going to tell her and Rose today if we ever had a moment away from Emmett and Edward. I knew Alice was just going to tell Rose, anyway, even though we'd only known her for a few days, so I figured I'd just tell her myself and not give Alice the opportunity to blow things out of proportions. I felt like I could confide in Rose, so I really didn't have that big of a problem with telling her about personal dilemmas.

"Hey, come on in, guys. Emmett and Edward just left to go pick up some food. Do you like Thai?" she asked as she ushered us inside.

"I think we've only ever had it once when we went to Seattle, but I liked it," Alice responded, dropping her bag off on the counter.

"Yeah, it was good," I agreed.

"Good," Rose nodded. "How has your guys's week gone?" We all sat down in the living room, Alice and me on the couch and Rose in a single chair.

"Great!" Alice started, telling her all about the activities we had been doing for orientation and the people we had met. "Oh! And a friend from high school is actually one of the advisors! Well, he's not just a friend. Bella actually dated him for a year. But we were all pretty good friends until he left for college. Well, he originally was in New York, but we found out he transferred here when we were on the road over. Crazy right?"

"Oh, wow," Rose said, obviously needing a second to comprehend the tangent Alice had just spewed. "Well, what's his name? Maybe we know him."

"Riley Biers," Alice answered immediately.

"Computer Science, right? He and Edward were lab partners for their mandatory biology class last year. Good job, Bella. He's pretty hot." She smirked at me in approval. "Have you talked to him since you've been here?"

Again, ever the first one to the party, Alice answered. "No, she booked it out of his presence pretty fast yesterday."

"Actually," I butted in, causing Alice to give me an astonished and somewhat proud look, "I ran into him at the gym yesterday. We talked for a bit."

Alice squealed and pulled me closer to her. "Oh my God! What did you guys talk about? Did he ask you out?"

I rolled my eyes. "Al, we just caught up a little bit, like normal people do. He asked me how I'd been, he asked about what we were doing for my birthday, asked how you were. Normal shit."

She pouted slightly. "Damn." Rose chuckled at her as she seemed to contemplate something. Her face lit up again in a moment, which caused me to groan. Hurricane Alice could not be deterred. "But what if he does ask you out? Would you say yes?"

I rolled my eyes, ready to give her a noncommittal answer, but Rose spoke up. "Bella's been there and done that, I'm assuming." She looked at me for confirmation, so I nodded. "Why would she go back?"

Alice huffed out a breath. "Because, Riley was the best she had. Jake was a pushover and Mike was boring. A girl needs some spice back in her life!"

"So then just sleep with him," Rose shrugged, looking at me now. "No need for the dates again. So long as you're both willing to just fuck, I don't see the harm in that. Relationships are overrated, anyway."

I raised an eyebrow at her. Hadn't she been with Emmett for awhile?

"Don't get me wrong, I love Em and I could never be without him now, but he has been a pain in my ass since day one. He always will be, but I wouldn't want to put up with anyone else."

"That's strangely sweet," Alice cooed.

I just laughed. "Anyway, I was thinking along the same lines as Rose."

"You were?" Alice balked.

I shrugged. "Yeah, why not?"

"You've just always been in relationships with the guys you sleep with."

"I wasn't really in a relationship with Jake," I protested. "And the opportunity to just be friends with benefits has never really presented itself. I'm not opposed to it."

Alice shrugged now. "I mean, if that's what floats your boat, go for it."

Thankfully, Edward and Emmett chose that moment to return from their food run, ending our strange conversation. Now I just had to get through the rest of the afternoon being in Edward's presence and try not to mount him where he sat. Should be relatively easy. The thoughts would run rampant, but I was determined to keep my body in check. Hopefully, we'd never be alone together in a room any time soon. I could not take another round of that. A girl could only handle so much.

* * *

 **So, we meet Riley, officially. I know some of you aren't going to like where this is going, but just stick with me, okay?**

 **We will get to see some more Edward/Bella interaction next chapter, and you can bet the sexual tension is going to be thick, because that's how I like it.**

 **As always, please review. I read each and every single one of them, and I am being a good author and responding to them :D if you have any** **questions or suggestions, feel free to drop them in the reviews. I always take your ideas into consideration, because they're usually genius.**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	5. Wanna Lick the Icing Off

**Hello! Sorry for the bit of a delay. My weekend was just unexpectedly busy, but I was able to get this finished a few hours ago. So, here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy it!**

* * *

 **Chapter Five**

 **Wanna Lick the Icing Off**

 _Wednesday, September 9th, 2016_

 _1:27 pm_

After a relatively painless lunch, in which Alice, Emmett, and Rose dominated most of the conversation, so that Edward and I had as little actual interaction as possible, we made our way to Emmett's shop, except for Alice. I was a little pissed that she wouldn't be there to help me not make a fool of myself around Edward and keep things as far from awkward as possible, but she had a date with Jasper. I couldn't really fault her for jumping at the opportunity to spend time with the boy that she had basically been obsessing over for the last few days, because I had never seen my best friend to taken with anybody. But I was still a little mad. I would just have her make it up to me later.

Fortunately, Edward took his own car over to the shop, saying he was meeting up with Irina later, so I rode with Emmett and Rose and escaped from having to be stuck in a car with Edward. Rose and Emmett chatted about possible places to go for my birthday celebration, since Alice mentioned something while we were eating. I wasn't that big into going out, but I wouldn't pass up the opportunity if other people were willing to pay for my alcohol consumption as a present. I planned to get just drunk enough that night that I'd be able to dance without caring. That's how I usually knew I was at a good level.

When we entered the shop, Jake greeted us from his hunched over position at his station, working on what looked to be a rather large piece on a man's left shoulder blade. There was a woman in there that I had never seen before, and she looked to be drawing out a stencil for a tattoo, the table top backlit so she could trace a design. Her short jet black hair hid her face from view, but I could see that her arms were covered in tattoos, some tribal and some more contemporary. She had the same russet skin tone as Jake, and I wondered if she was Native American as well.

"Jake, you already know who this is," Emmett said. "Leah." The woman at the drafting table turned, her dark eyes flicking to me and then to Emmett. "This is Bella. She's going to be working here now. She's a photographer and I hired her to document the artwork. She'll also be answering phones and keeping schedule books and things like that."

Leah leveled her gaze at me, and Jake somehow noticed.

"Leah, be nice, she's cool," he warned, sending a small grin my way. "Ignore my cousin, she can be a little abrasive." So, Leah was Native American, and her and Jake were related. Good to know.

Her eyes scanned me up and down. "As long as she's not annoying as Triple Dub, we're good."

"What's Triple Dub?" I asked to anyone who was willing to answer. I had a feeling that Leah didn't speak more than was absolutely necessary, so I wasn't really expecting her to answer.

Emmett started laughing and Rose tried hard to suppress a smile. Jake finally answered me with a roll of his eyes.

"Triple Dub, as in Triple W. It stands for Wicked Witch of the West. That's our nickname for Irina when her and Edward aren't here," he explained.

"Do you guys just give nicknames to everyone?" I wondered aloud, though I had meant it more for just myself.

"What has Emmett dubbed you?" Leah asked, a somewhat amused glint in her eyes. I was glad to see she wasn't being hostile, since Jake's plea with her earlier made her seem like a rather disagreeable person.

"It was actually Edward. He called me Jailbait once, and now he and Emmett call me JB," I huffed. I had a feeling I'd never live that down.

Leah didn't ask for the story behind the name, thankfully. Instead, she just rolled her eyes and shot her boss a little smirk. She turned back around to the stencils she was working on and didn't say anything else.

Before I got started on anything, Rose showed me around, telling me which schedule book was for which artist and that she didn't do appointments for piercings since they usually only took her five minutes anyway. Her and Emmett also sat me down to tell me they were planning on updating their website and getting more involved in their Instagram and Facebook accounts, so they'd like if I took pictures of things around the shop for patrons to see what when on day to day. I agreed that it wouldn't be a problem for me to collect those photos and post them to their social media pages.

Edward walked into the shop in the middle of Rose and Em's discussion, and I could smell the strong scent of cigarette smoke wafting off of him. I had never really liked the smell before, since it reminded me of seedy casinos and dirty motel rooms, but the scent on Edward was evoking a completely different reaction. I couldn't really explain it, but it was probably a combination of the smoke and the scent that was just completely him that I had noticed the other day when he had cornered me in the kitchen of his apartment. As soon as the scent hit me, I looked up, and Edward's eyes locked on mine, his green eyes blazing brighter than usual. Before I could get sucked in and embarrass myself, I looked away, focusing back on Rose and Em.

I tried to ignore his presence, but I was hyper aware of his place in the room at all times, and it was starting to drive me insane. Even though I was still involved in the conversation, I knew exactly when Edward pulled out the chair at his station and sat down, and when he pulled out a piece of stenciling paper and flipped on the switch at the drafting table. Every little movement he made, I was completely aware of, and it was the most unnerving thing in the world.

Once Emmett and Rose dismissed me, I pulled out my camera from its case and wandered around the shop, snapping pictures of past designs that were hanging on the walls. I noticed that Leah had set aside the stencil she was working on earlier, so I went over and took a picture of it, too. I could feel her eyes on me as I snapped a few in different orientations, but it didn't make me nervous like Edward's gaze did. I could still feel him watching me, even though I was on the other side of the room. I ignored him to the best of my ability.

After I had wandered around for about ten minutes, the phone rang, and Rose was in the back with a customer, so I headed over and answered it, giving the spiel that Rose told me she usually said when she answered the phone.

"Good afternoon, Six Feet Deep Tattoo, this is Bella speaking, how can I help you?" I answered, not trying to sound overly chipper but not trying to be rude either.

The voice on the other end asked if there were any openings for Leah over the weekend. We kept all the schedule books in the bottom drawer of the front desk, so I bent and grabbed Leah's and scanned through. I let him know that she had a four hour opening on Saturday afternoon if it was okay with him and what he wanted done. He agreed and I quickly penciled him in before saying goodbye. I tossed Leah's book back in the drawer once I hung up and let her know about her new appointment. She seemed to know the person, so she just nodded and thanked me for filling in her schedule.

I ditzed around for another hour or so, taking some pictures for their social media pages, and I ended up getting the final shot for the piece Jake had been working on to add to his portfolio. I snapped one on my phone as well and sent it to Emmett to get onto Instagram.

I was in the middle of a phone call with a person inquiring about piercing prices when the Wicked Witch of the West strolled in in all her fake tanned glory. The outfit she wore was borderline indecent, considering her shorts we so short I could nearly see her cooch and I'm pretty sure I could see a little bit of areola where her neckline dropped. She was wearing heels for some unknown reason, but it was probably for attention, considering the way many male patrons stared at her ass as she walked by. The eye roll that was dying to be let free was vicariously lived out through the one I saw Leah throw Irina's way, and I was suddenly much more fond of the quiet artist. I had a feeling we'd bond over our disdain for Triple Dub.

"Eddie," she trilled, her white teeth flashing behind her hot pink painted lips. She did an awkward little run/skip thing over to Edward's station, where he was with a customer. The poor guy's eyes bugged out when he got a good look at Irina, and I saw the way he quickly averted his gaze from the way her tits were bouncing around, which was a feat because I was one hundred percent positive they were fake. I guess she found a good surgeon.

A grimace passed over Edward's usually blank face as Irina pulled up a chair next to him, hovering over his shoulder as he tattooed this guy's thigh. I could tell he was trying his hardest to ignore her and keep up a conversation with his customer, but Irina kept making comments that neither one of them really answered or acknowledged. It was kind of sad to watch her get rejected, but she also didn't seem to notice, so I couldn't bring myself to care.

Before I left for the day, Rose confirmed that we were going to this club she liked to celebrate my birthday on Saturday. She made the statement to include Jake, if he wanted to come, and Edward, which, by default, included Irina. Luckily, she said she was going to New York for the weekend to be with family, so I wouldn't have to endure her at my own birthday celebration. I wasn't sure that I could be so civil toward her when there was alcohol in my system.

When I returned to the dorms, Alice was back and all giddy from her date with Jasper. She told me all about her day, how he took her to this little park near the water and they fed ducks and took a walk. Then he took her to this little cafe and they sat and had coffee and shared little snack foods. Alice was in love with his accent and she was already calling him 'Jazzy', which was hilarious. If I knew Jasper at all, I would hold that shit over him. As it was, I was going to tell Emmett about it and then enjoy watching him tease his friend about it.

Eventually, we switched gears and Alice asked me about how my first day went. I told her the pictures I had taken came out well and how Leah was like my snark soulmate. I told her Leah's nickname for Irina and she laughed so hard she cried. I also informed her about Rose's plans for Saturday and that we'd be without Irina for the duration of it, to which we both did a little cheer.

Unfortunately, this led to Alice's claim that we needed to go shopping to find perfect clubbing outfits. She was still strong in her Operation: Make Edward Cum in His Pants stance, and was bound and determined to get me into something "alluring, but not trashy." I was okay with this, as long as this shopping trip didn't turn into an all day marathon. I was not above breaking down and crying in the middle of a store like a three year old if she had me going from store to store for more than four hours.

The following day, we didn't have any events planned in the morning, so Alice and I went down to the little coffee shop we liked and had breakfast. Rose joined us, claiming she had to get away from Emmett and Edward and all their testosterone. I thought she was crazy for willingly living with two men, but she seemed content most of the time. She said it had just been awhile since she had actual female friends to hang out with outside of school or work. I genuinely liked hanging out with and talking to Rose, so I was more than willing to fill her need for female company, and her and Alice were little co-conspirators, so they got along amazingly. Only ten minutes after sitting down at the table with us, her and Alice were plotting ways to fulfill her Operation. The fact that Rose was so on board with torturing her brother seemed a little odd, so I asked her about it.

"Bella, one thing you will learn very quickly about my brother is that he's a spoiled brat," she stated matter of factly. "Mom and Dad gave him everything he ever wanted, and what he didn't get, he could charm his way into. It's been the same now that he's an adult. Whatever Edward wants, Edward gets, including, but not limited to, women. So, I'm all for this little torture that Alice is putting him through. He's attracted to you and he can do nothing about it. It's the kick in the ass that he needs. I love him, truly, but he needs an ego check every once in awhile."

I guess, in some twisted way, Rose's compliance in this little game was coming from a place of love for her brother. Plus, she probably hated Irina more than Alice and me combined, so there was that, I suppose.

After finishing our coffee, Alice and Rose dragged me to a shop that Rose liked to shop at just a few miles away, so we piled into her car that she had brought with her to the coffee shop. The shop looked pretty normal and unassuming from the outside, so I wasn't too wary of shopping in there. I was hoping Alice would let me wear jeans, because I had no intentions of wearing some revealing micro skirt that she thought looked good on me.

Luckily, I came out of the experience pretty unscathed. The outfit Alice and Rose had put me in was sexy but not overly revealing and I didn't feel uncomfortable in it, so I agreed to it, which appeased Rose and Alice. They gushed over how flustered I was going to make Edward on the way back to Rose's apartment. We had agreed to stay with Rose for awhile in her home because Edward was on campus doing stuff for orientation and Emmett was in at the shop, so she was lonely.

We sat around and talked about our lives. I told her all about my past with Riley and how he had first contacted me during our trip over the summer. Alice took a turn talking about Jasper and how he's the perfect gentleman. Alice being Alice proclaimed that she was positive that he was 'the one' and they were going to be together forever. Rose and I just humored her, like any good friends would.

The rest of the week passed by pretty quickly, with Alice seeing Jasper often and us going to some of the orientation events and hanging out with Rose. I went into the shop both Thursday and Friday in order to help out around the shop and take some photos of freshly finished pieces and some newly drawn stencils. Friday afternoon and I had to spend some time beside Edward as he finished up a piece in order to photograph the finishes stages and the final product.

I watched quietly from the extra seat at his station, looking over his shoulder as he focused on the woman's ribcage. I stayed as far away as possible without completely mottling the photos that I was capturing. The warmth from his back as he leaned over his work was radiating all over the front of my body, creating a false sense of comfort. He didn't really acknowledge my presence besides the brief moment at the beginning of his session when he glanced up at me when I took the seat beside him. I was just glad that Irina wasn't here like she normally was, hovering and being obnoxious. She had left the night before for her weekend trip to New York, and she wouldn't be back until Monday when classes started up. I was just glad she wouldn't be surprising us with an appearance at my birthday celebration the following night.

The session lasted about four hours in total, and I stayed out of Edward's way as much as physically possible. His arm would brush against my side every so often when he went to grab more in on his needle, and I tried not to jump at the sudden contact every time. If he noticed the subtle contact, he didn't show it, because his eyes wouldn't stray their path from his station, back to the client on his table. The woman seemed to be taking the rib tattoo like a champ, but I noticed there was another on the opposite side, so she was probably used to pain by now. She was very pretty too, and she flirted pretty mercilessly with Edward when she was allowed to make some movement in her ribcage. I tried to ignore the way she stared at him with obvious lust in her eyes and licked her lips when he looked up at her from his constant gaze on his work. Sometimes she would look over at me, and I schooled my face into a neutral expression or flashed her a little smile. I had no reason to be upset with her for her flirting, so I tried not to show it.

I was beyond relieved when Edward finally declared himself finished and allowed me to take a final photo of the completed product. I quickly packed up my stuff and tried to escape without garnering any attention from Emmett or Edward or anyone else, really. I just wanted to go back to the dorm and try to unwind from the tension I was feeling from being so close to Edward for several hours. I thought that not having to converse with him would have made it easier, but then I had nothing to distract myself from how much I wanted his body. Because Edward was incredibly sexy when he tattooed, his muscles stretching and tensing when he moved back and forth, and his lips lightly pursed as he concentrated on his movements. He looked so innocent and unassuming when he was working, and it almost made me forget that he was frustrating and made me think some very impure thoughts.

"I'll see you tomorrow night, JB," he said as he cleaned up his station. When I turned to face him to acknowledge his comment, his bright green eyes were boring into my own, probably reading my naughty thoughts about him. And, like he could have possibly heard me, his mouth quirked up into that stupid smirk that made me simultaneously want to slap and kiss it off of him.

"You're coming?" I asked, actually a little surprised. I had sort of expected that he'd back out and choose to stay home or go do something else. He honestly didn't seem to like me very much, so I didn't think he'd want to come out on a night that was celebrating my very existence. He was always so cold when he wasn't being infuriating and teasing me with his stupid nickname.

His smirk only widened and there was a dangerous gleam in his eyes. "I sure hope so."

I realized the mistake of the double entendre in my question, and I had to restrain myself from actually slapping my palm to my forehead. I needed to monitor my word use around him, evidently.

I just rolled my eyes in response. "Whatever. See you tomorrow, Edward."

His chuckle was the last thing I heard as I walked out of the shop.

}ACH{

 **{EPOV}**

 _Saturday, September 11, 2016_

 _8:24 pm_

Em and I sat in the front seat of his Jeep outside of Squirt's and JB's dorm building, waiting for Rose to bring them down. We had only been out there for about five minutes, but I was growing antsy. My fingers were drumming the beat of a song I had been practicing a lot recently on the dash of the car, and the heel of my left foot was tapping lightly to keep time. It's something I did when I was playing at a piano, since I felt like having a metronome on top of the instrument was annoying as hell.

"Dude, stop fidgeting," Em demanded, his giant, meaty hand dropping to cover mine to still the movements.

I shot him a look, but I didn't bother to say anything. I knew I was fidgeting; it was a habit that made itself known when I was impatient or anxious. I mostly did it before an important recital, and it was really bad before my audition when I first got to school. Tonight, music wasn't what was causing me anxiety, though, and Emmett obviously knew that, since I had spent the last couple years living with him, but I was hoping he would just brush it off.

"What's got you so antsy?" he asked, going straight where I didn't want him to go.

"Nothing," I mumbled. I shoved my hands into the pockets of my leather jacket to prevent from tapping, and I hoped that would stave off Emmett's interest.

"Mhm," Em hummed, obviously not believing me, but there was no way I was giving him an actual answer. No one needed to know how anxious this night was making me, and how much I was dreading the next few days.

I looked out the window and caught sight of the three girls just as the exited the front door of the large brick building. My sister and Squirt were in short little dresses that showed way too much skin, as far as I was concerned. I knew that's what I was into in girls, but it still didn't make it okay for my little sister to be wearing the same thing a prostitute would be seen in as she worked the corner. I didn't appreciate guys staring at Rose's tits, and I had made threats on several occasions when we were in high school and when she first came to college. When I first met Emmett, I was beyond pissed that he was four years older than her, but I soon came to realize that he was exactly what Rose needed. He was respectful of her and he was quick to take up the threatening when they were out together, so he got gold stars for that.

Then there was JB. Bella. I had only known her for about a week, but I knew that she had a little different taste from Alice and my sister, though they were pretty much connected at the hip already. I was glad that Rose had some female friends, but that just meant that JB was around a lot, plus she had the job at the shop. Having her around a majority of the week was slowly becoming the worst kind of torture, but I couldn't help waiting for the moment that she walked through the front door of the shop.

Aside from that day that she and Squirt came over to swim and barbecue, when JB wore that very revealing, sexy little two piece that barely covered anything, I noticed she dressed a bit more normally than her friends. Any time she was in the shop, she was in tank tops or t-shirts and jeans or shorts. She either had on flip flops or this pair of classic Chuck's that she seemed to like, unlike the heels my sister constantly wore, or the frilly sandals that Squirt usually had on with whatever she was wearing. I liked that JB seemed so casual and laid back when she picked out her outfits. It was refreshing, since all the women around me usually dressed super girly or like sluts. JB was a nice change of pace.

As they got closer to the car, I could finally make out Bella's outfit, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that Squirt and my sister hadn't forced her into a short dress or skirt. She was wearing jeans that looked like they were painted on, and I dreaded seeing her turn around at any point in the night. Seeing her bend over at work on a regular basis to get the schedule books out of the front desk was enough to make me hide in my little corner of the shop to prevent anyone from seeing the raging hard on I sported every time she did it. Her ass was the best one I had seen in a long time.

Bella's body was great in a way that I had never really seen for my own eyes. I have had plenty of women naked before, and they all looked good in their own right, but they were typically very thin with tanned skin and fake tits. Bella, on the other hand, was anything but fake. The first time I saw her standing out on that freeway, I couldn't believe someone with a body that good existed outside of celebrities. She was obviously thin, and she was petite, though definitely taller than Squirt. I had just watched for awhile as she stood talking to Rose and Em, her little cut off jean shorts, fitting nicely over her curved hips and her fantastic ass. Her legs, even though pretty short in comparison to other girls I had been with, seemed to go on forever, and they were toned, and I had a feeling they would look amazing propped up on my shoulder or wrapped around my waist. Her crop top had exposed her toned stomach and the soft curve of her waist into her more pronounced hips and tits. Her skin was pale and looked incredibly soft. My body wanted her before I had even made it to her face, and I was ashamed of that fact now.

When I finally settled on her face that day, I was actually taken away by how beautiful she actually was. No girl I had seen before looked as good as she did. Her big brown eyes were innocent and made her seem young, even younger than I learned she already was. Her facial features were soft, unlike my current girlfriend, who was all sharp angles and a sort of wicked beauty that I was starting not to see anymore. Bella's lips betrayed the innocence of her eyes, though. They were a perfect rose shade, and they were plump, and the way she pulled her bottom one between her teeth made me wish it was my teeth doing that instead. And the dirty words I had heard uttered from those lips made my fantasies about her that much better. I could imagine the dirty talk and the little moans, and this line of thought was definitely not doing anything to help my situation.

In the time that I had zoned out, the girls had piled into the back of the car, and I took the opportunity to adjust myself in my jeans as Em pulled out into the street and the girls chattered in the backseat. My fingers resumed their tapping on the window sill this time, but Em's music drowned it out, so he didn't bitch at me this time.

I did my best not to glance back at Bella on our way to the club, since I didn't want to see the rest of her outfit and make my situation worse. I'd wait until we were in the darkness of the club to look her over, then I could get drunk and forget all about how much I wanted to peel her out of those sinful jeans. I knew alcohol wasn't really going to remedy anything, but I was going to tell myself that just for my own sanity.

We pulled up to the parking lot just a block from the club and we all piled out. Em and I trailed behind the girls, who had linked arms and were all walking in a row down the sidewalk, forcing other people to go around them, which I found hilarious. What I didn't find hilarious was watching JB's hips sway with each step she took. I hadn't noticed until then that she was in a pair of black heels that gave her about four extra inches. I wouldn't normally like seeing her in heels, since I was used to the kicked back JB that I saw everyday, but I couldn't help thinking about her in nothing but those heels. I shoved both hands in my jean pockets to try to disguise from my still raging hard on. Tonight was going to be torture.

We finally got to the club, and Rose and Alice did some sort of sweet talking to the bouncer to get him to disregard the fact that JB was not yet a legal adult. Her birthday was in a couple of days, though, so I'm sure they pulled that fact out, plus, Squirt's and my sister's tits were on full display. I knew that Bella's black jacket was zipped up, but I was sure her tits would have brought the bouncer to his knees. The poor bouncer didn't stand a chance. Emmett laughed and clapped the guy on the shoulder as we entered. The guy didn't ask any of us for ID.

We quickly got a table and Emmett went to go get a round of shots as well as some beers. Rose and Alice liked the girly drinks and the fruity flavored liquor, but I wasn't sure what JB really preferred. I knew she liked beer, but did she prefer the same drinks as her friends?

Emmett came back with a tray full of shot glasses and two beers. I quickly grabbed one and her grabbed the other. I popped off the top on the corner of the table and took a swig.

"What is what?" JB asked, gesturing at the shot glasses.

Squirt picked one up and sniffed it before tossing it back. "That one was Malibu," she stated as she licked her lips.

"Those half are Malibu and those half are tequila," Em said, gesturing to which was which.

Bella looked them over before waving over to a waiter that was walking around. The guy saw and made a beeline over to our table, a grin plastered on his face. "What can I do for you?"

She ignored the intonation of his voice. "Can we get some lime and salt, please?" The guy nodded and quickly made his way back to the bar.

I looked over and saw Em's raised eyebrow, questioning JB. She shrugged when she saw his look.

"Who does tequila shots without lime and salt?" was her only response.

When the guy returned with her request, she smiled and thanked him. She set up two shots in front of her and licked a little spot on her hand to pour the salt. I felt my own tongue mimic her movements against my lower lip, and her eyes shot up and caught mine at the same moment. Her eyes bounced from mine to my mouth quickly, but she averted her eyes and grabbed the salt shaker. I could feel my heart beating too hard in my chest as she licked the line of salt, tossed back both shots, and then put the cut slice of lime in her mouth. Her plump lips stretched out to accommodate the piece of fruit made sure that my erection wasn't going anywhere. Also, the way she looked right at me as she licked the combined flavors off her lips after she was finished defiling the lime wasn't helping matters.

"Well, we know JB goes hard," Emmett boomed through a laugh. Squirt and Rose joined along.

After the girls caught up to Bella, and Bella took another shot of Malibu this time, they begged Bella to go dance with them. JB agreed and quickly shed her jacket, revealing what she was wearing underneath.

The sheer dark blue tank top hung pretty loosely off her frame, fully revealing the black lacey bra thing she was wearing underneath it. I could see the shiny front clasp of the bra, nestled snugly between her tits, drawing my eyes right there. I should have been ashamed of how long I looked, but she had to know what would happen when she wore something like that.

I brought my bottle to my lips and took several pulls, anything to draw my gaze away from her. When I finally finished the bottle, the three of them were gone, headed toward the dance floor. I sighed and slouched down into the booth. I was tempted to grab a few of the shots of tequila to take them myself, but I knew how quickly shit went downhill when I mixed my alcohols. I had to stick with one or the other all night, or else I was in for a wild ride. And I couldn't do that when I was actually dating someone. I had no control when I blacked out, and the probability of me taking someone home to fuck JB out of my system was too high. I may have had a lot of sexual partners, but I didn't cheat. I had hard limits. So, I usually just took out my frustration with JB on Irina, which she didn't seem to mind. Not to mention she never knew why I was so willing to sleep with her so often.

I had been a few days away from dumping Irina when JB first showed up. Now that I was constantly around her and I knew she was off limits, I had to have some way to get out all of my pent up tension, and Irina was a willing participant. I knew that was super shitty of me, believe me, but we were both consenting adults. I'd have to get rid of Irina eventually, but right now she was pretty convenient.

"So, when are you getting rid of the Witch?" Em asked, gazing out to where the girls were dancing, keeping an eye on them.

I sighed and scrubbed a hand through my hair. "I don't know, man," I admitted.

"Bella officially turns eighteen in two days," he said. It was supposed to sound nonchalant, but I knew what he was getting at. He knew JB got under my skin that no other girl ever had, but that didn't mean I was going to get her.

"And?" I asked. I didn't need him to know that I was looking forward to her being a legal adult. I had been trying to convince myself and Rose and Em that JB was nothing more than friend material, and even then, all we did was badger each other. She hardly ever spoke to me when she was in the shop, and the one time we had a conversation for more than two minutes, she had implied that I had an STD and had bedded every girl in the school.

People liked to stick to the rumor mill, and I had apparently become a pretty big name in it by the end of my freshman year of college. Prior to the start of college, I had only ever slept with one girl, and she had been a long time girlfriend. She ended up moving all the way across the country to attend, UCLA film school, and it ended there. I slept with one girl my freshman year at UMass and my name is suddenly on everyone's lips. Even by the end of that year, about ten different girls were saying that I had slept with them, but I had never even known their names, in reality. I had a couple little flings my sophomore year and by the start of my junior year, I was some imagined manwhore who slept with everything with a pussy and a pulse. I mean, I had my fair share of partners, but I certainly had not slept with every girl at school. I had taste, and some girls definitely didn't fall in the range.

By the time Irina came around, I had only slept with seven girls, but people like to make mountains out of mole hills, and the first thing anyone ever learned about me was my fake reputation. Obviously, word had gotten around to JB within days of her being in Boston, and it had apparently left an impression. I was bitter about it, since I was sure JB and I could have at least been friends, but she avoided being in my company like I had herpes or something.

"And, everyone knows you've got the hots for her," Emmett supplied. "Dump Irina and date JB. We all like her better anyway. Even Leah likes her, that's gotta say something."

It was true, but I'm sure Leah was a little biased. "Leah's lesbian, Em. Of course she likes JB."

He waved a hand at me to dismiss my statement. "She doesn't flirt with JB, man. Besides, I think she's seeing someone, now. But, she genuinely likes her. She even told me she appreciated having JB around the shop."

"Okay, I get it, you all like her," I huffed. The shots sitting on the table looked even more tempting now. I restrained myself, though. "Doesn't mean she likes me, though."

"So you're admitting that you like her?" His grin was a little too cocky.

I shrugged. "She doesn't talk to me, man. I don't think she wants me to really even know her. What I do know about her, I hear from you and my sister. I can't like someone that I don't know."

That was true. Sure, I thought she was the hottest chick I had seen in my entire twenty-one years, but I didn't actually know anything substantial about her. I knew she and Alice had lived in a tiny town in Washington state and she was a journalism major with a minor in photography. I knew she was an amazing photographer, and that was only judging by the pieces I had seen added to our portfolios over the last few days. She was pretty quiet around the shop, but I wasn't sure if that was just when I was there. She had also let slip that she wasn't a virgin when I had run into her in my kitchen. So, that was about a handful of things that I knew about her, and they were things that literally anyone could know. It wasn't exactly information you built a relationship off of, or even a friendship, for that matter.

"Well, then get to know her," Emmett urged. "She's a cool chick, Ed. I think you guys could actually be friends if you weren't so cold around her."

I pinched the bridge of my nose with my thumb and first finger, and squeezed my eyes shut. Do I tell Emmett about what happened in the apartment the other day?

 _Ah, fuck it._

"I'm not intentionally cold, Em. She just implied that I had an STD, and I don't really feel like talking to anyone that thinks that lowly of me."

"Well, you are dating the She-Devil," replied with a shrug. I just scowled at him before sliding myself out of the booth. "Where are you going?"

"To get drunk," I called back over my shoulder.

I sat myself at the bar and ordered a beer. That was gone within two minutes, and another one was promptly placed in front of me. That one I nursed a little more slowly, trying to actually enjoy the taste of the liquid sliding down my throat. I just watched the people in the club from my perch on the stool, and my eyes quickly found JB, Squirt, and my sister dancing together. I saw Emmett stroll up and grab Rose, pulling her to him and dancing with her. The smile on her face was enough to make me happy, so I refocused on JB and her best friend. Alice was currently walking away, seemingly headed back to the table to take another shot.

Some guy was pulling JB against him, and I could see the look of discomfort on her face as her eyes darted around to find an escape. I saw her lips form some words, her eyebrows pulled together in frustration. The guy just laughed and leaned down to speak into her ear. The look in her eyes had me up out of my seat and pushing through the writhing bodies before I could even think twice. JB and I may not be friends, or even on friendly terms, but I wasn't going to stand by and watched as she get harassed by some fuckhead.

I slapped my hand down on the guy's shoulder as soon as I was close enough, startling him into looking up at me.

"Mind keeping your hands off my girl, man?" It came out as a question, but the look I was giving him let him make no mistake that it was actually a demand.

His hands promptly lifted from their place on JB's hips and he raised them in defense. "Sorry, didn't know she was spoken for."

"Bella speaks for herself, but thanks for being a misogynistic asshole, anyways," I replied, barely refraining from pushing him aside as I slid in to take his place behind her. The dude just rolled his eyes and walked away, and I felt JB take a deep breath, but her tension from before didn't fade.

"Thanks for that," she replied finally.

"No problem," I returned. I took a step back from her, creating as much space between us as possible with the crowded dance floor. I didn't want to touch her for longer than necessary, since she always seemed so uncomfortable with my presence. "I'm gonna go back to the table." I made a move to walk away, but her little hand shot out and grabbed me around my wrist.

"Hey, you don't have to go and sulk by yourself. Dance with me."

* * *

 **So, there we have it! I promise, we will finish this little scene in the next chapter, and then onto the start of the school year.**

 **How did you all like EPOV? Was it good? Was there anything you think I should add to his perspective? I'm not a guy, so the male mind is not my expertise, but I'd like to think I understand them pretty well. Most of my friends are male, so I'm subjected to all their moods and musings when they share them. So, hopefully my portrayal of this Edward is good. Let me know!**

 **Please, as always, leave me reviews! I love hearing from and talking to you guys. You're words always make me smile or laugh when I read them. I do appreciate that you guys take the time to review! It means the world to me :)**

 **I'll see you guys next week! And if I don't see you before then, Happy Halloween to those who celebrate it. I'm going as a vampire for the first time in my life. Weird, I know.**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	6. Tequila

**So sorry for the wait, guys! School has been kicking my ass lately. I'm hoping to get a few more chapters up before the holidays, since holidays = finals. It's honestly anyone's guess, though. I will try my best, regardless.**

 **Some of you mentioned that you're a little creeped out by Edward, and I'm sorry you feel that way, but no one ever said he was going to be perfect in this story. He's got things to deal with and a lot of growing to do, so hopefully you will see those changes and maturation as the story goes on. So, I hope you get through his cringe-worthy parts to get to the good stuff. That's all I have to say on that.**

 **I hope you guys enjoy and that this was at least a little worth the wait.**

* * *

 **Chapter Six**

 **TEQUILA!**

 **{EPOV}**

 _9:32 pm_

" _Hey, you don't have to go and sulk by yourself. Dance with me."_

I was surprised by her words. Bella generally avoided me when she could, and I knew that was pretty much my own doing. I was a dick to her whenever we spoke; I knew that. I knew a lot of things I did were wrong, but I still did them. Like, I knew I should break up with Irina, and I would in time, but I was still with her for now. It made me a pretty giant fuckhead. I knew this. I'd fix it eventually. Soon. But I was still confused by JB's request.

She had always avoided me, and rightfully so. I had given her the nickname that she hated the first time I met her. The second time we spoke, we had a pissing match about our sex lives, which was weird by itself, but it had also made me incredibly hard, which had never happened to me while arguing with a girl before. And now she was thanking me for saving her from some creep who didn't really take no for an answer. I felt like we were in this weird back and forth, like a tennis match. I wanted stability now. I wanted us to be civil, maybe even friends. I'd be content with JB being a friend.

"Are you sure, JB?" I asked, finally. I knew she had to be at least a little bit drunk, and I didn't want her to regret asking me to dance in the morning. It was just dancing, but girls were weird about that shit sometimes.

She rolled her eyes, but there was a small smile tugging at her lips. "Yes, Edward, I'm sure." Her hand that was still around my wrist tugged me back to her, in same position we had been in earlier.

Not wanting to overstep any boundaries JB had for herself, I hesitantly placed my hands on her hips. I found a neutral position that was going to prevent me from touching her ass or getting my fingers too close between her legs. I also made sure there was a good little gap between our bodies, to prevent her amazing ass from pressing up against my cock. The last thing I needed was to pop a boner while dancing with Bella. Somehow, I felt like she would not appreciate that in the slightest.

Bella swayed her hips back and forth to the beat of the music, and I tried very hard not to look. That failed about two seconds in, though, and all I could really look at was the way her body moved, imagining what it would look like if she was naked and on top of me. And that line of thought was not helping the 'trying not to get aroused' thing, so I quickly averted my gaze to the back of her head and tried to think of something other than her body and the warmth I could feel over my chest radiating from her.

She must have been more drunk than I originally thought, or the effect of the alcohol was just now starting to hit her, because she insistently backed her body up into mine, making us flush from shoulder to hip, and reached back to wind her hand into my hair. I nearly growled at the sensation of her soft little fingers tugging lightly at the strands at the back of my head. Mixed with the tingling energy that was created by her body pressed against mine as she continued to dance, there was no way to push off the stiffness in my jeans. I just hoped she was too wrapped up in actually dancing to notice anything. I moved my body just enough to pass off as actually dancing, which seemed to appease her.

She kept me attached to her for a couple songs, until she declared that she needed another drink. She untangled herself from me, but she grabbed my hand and pulled me over to the table that we had been occupying originally, where Em and Rose were sitting, Rose on his lap. The drinks were still on the table, several shots of both tequila and Malibu and the limes and salt shaker still there. I hoped to God she wouldn't pull the tequila shot thing again. Watching her lick the line of salt from her hand was nearly too much, especially when she looked me in the eye as she did it.

Unfortunately, she did grab all the things necessary for the tequila shots. I thought I'd just have to look away while she did it again, feign interest in opening a new bottle of beer or something. But, no. She turned to face me, a little grin on her face. Her eyes were slightly glassy, and I knew what came out of her mouth next was not something that she would ever say when she was sober.

"Do a body shot with me?"

I nearly choked on my own saliva. I was pretty sure my eyes had widened as far as they would go. I could hear my sister cackling from her spot at the table. When I glanced over, Emmett was trying to cover her mouth, but Rose was even more insistent than usual when she was buzzed, so she kept pushing his hand away, her cackling slowly getting louder. Emmett was trying and failing miserably at trying to contain his own laughter. I wanted to hit him. And stick out my tongue at my sister. Sometimes, I swear, neither of us had aged past ten.

"Please, Edward?" JB's voice broke through my glaring match with my sister. My eyes cut back to hers, and she was pouting. And it wasn't some gross ass pout that other girls tried to pull, with their bottom lips stuck out like they had an underbite. This was far too adorable and far too persuasive. JB probably used this pout to get shit out of her parents. Her wide eyes were opened in a plea, her eyebrows slightly pulled down in the center. I could tell her teeth were tugging at her bottom lip. I was a goner.

Unable to speak without choking or some other embarrassing shit, I just nodded. The smile that lit her face was nearly worth the torture I was about to willingly put myself through. JB instructed me to take my jacket off, so I did as she said, and tossed it onto the table. I sat in an empty chair so Bella would be able to reach, considering I was several inches taller than her. The top of her head barely made it to my chin.

Something flashed in JB's eyes as she reached forward and tugged my shirt collar to the side. Salt shaker in hand, she leaned forward, flashing me a peek down her shirt, exposing even more of the black lacey thing she was wearing under her shirt. The black made her creamy skin look even more pale, the swell of her breast begging more me to reach out and lick it.

Ironically, I was not the one doing the licking. JB nudged my head to the side, giving her better access to the place where my neck and shoulder met. She seemed to hesitate for a second before coming in closer. I was almost positive that she was looking at the tattoo that stretched across there. The second her hot tongue made contact with my skin, though, all thoughts of tattoos were gone from my mind. My hands gripped the edge of the chair, my knuckles hurting with the strength of my hold. I was pretty sure this was the only thing stopping me from reaching out and grabbing her to place her in my lap.

JB made a wet line across the junction and pulled back to add the salt. I felt grains falling into my shirt, but I couldn't really care at that moment. She was so close that I could smell the perfume she was wearing, and it was making me even harder than I already was. Whatever she was wearing was sweet and warm and reminded me of my home, which was kind of weird to say about perfume. Not that I thought about it long, because a second later, Bella's tongue was back on my neck, licking up the salt there. I bit the inside of my cheek to hold in the groan that was threatening to come out.

JB offered the lime to me as she put the shot glass to her lips. I bit into the rind end of the lime, waiting for her to swallow the liquor. I was almost more wound up about her lips being so close to mine than about her tongue on my skin. She'd probably keep her lips from touching mine, because I was pretty sure that's just how she was going to be, but I was still worried about it. If there hadn't been a fragile slice of fruit in between my teeth, I'd be clenching them together.

Of course, in typical drunk JB fashion, she did the opposite of what I was anticipating. As she leaned into grab the lime, she rested both hands on my thighs, way too close to where I was painfully hard. Her face was so close to mine, and I was almost positive that she winked at me when she bit into the lime, her soft lips brushing mine as her mouth wrapped around the fruit. That same tingling I had felt when her body had been against mine while we were dancing flared up, more intense. The second she had pulled back and stood, I was out of the chair and headed to the restroom, my hand already clutched around the pack of cigarettes in my pocket.

I could hear my sister laughing as I walked away, and the sound of Squirt and Em whistling at either JB or me could easily be heard above the rattling bass of the music. I wanted to tell them to fuck off or something, but I had to get out of there, desperately.

}ACH{

 **{BPOV}**

 _September 12th, 2015_

 _11:24 am_

I was woken that morning, at what I felt was way too early after getting plastered the night before, by Alice's little body landing aggressively on top of mine. The air was forced out of my lungs and I jolted awake, pushing her off of me in the progress. I heard her flop onto the floor and I attempted to pull my sheets back over my head before she could get up and do it again. Alice was fast when she wanted to be, though, and she ripped the sheets off of me. I was assaulted by the sunlight streaming in our window and the slight coolness of the air of the room.

"Isabella Marie! Get up. We're meeting Rose at the coffee shop, and you are going to spill all about your little body shot off of Edward. Because that was definitely not in the Operation plans."

I groaned and got out of bed. I quickly got dressed and brushed my hair and teeth all without talking to Alice. I was slightly hungover and still very tired, so I had no energy to deal with her chattering until I had a cup of coffee or five in my system. So, once I was dressed and had my bag, we were out the door, Alice's arm linked through mine. The walk to the coffee shop seemed faster than normal, and I had a feeling Alice was dragging me along at double her usual pace.

When we got there, Rose was already at a table, three mugs already on the table. This just meant I didn't have time to deflect their questions while I ordered my coffee. I didn't really have answers to give them anyway. There was really no explanation for the little stunt that I pulled the night before. I was drunk, Edward was there being hotter than usual, he was also slightly intoxicated, and his hands on my hips did something strange to my body. Once the idea popped into my head I had to act on it, and he had agreed, so I saw no point in not following through with my plan. Looking back on it now, when I was sober, it wasn't a good idea at all. Edward had a girlfriend, even though we were all fairly certain he didn't like her anymore, but I shouldn't have gotten to that point. I had definitely overstepped as far as Edward went, and I was berating myself for it now.

I sat down, and all Rose did was look at me with a raised eyebrow and a soft little smirk on her red painted lips. I avoided eye contact with her, taking a sip of my coffee that had already been doctored to perfection. Rose and I had only known each other for about a week, but she was observant, and knew exactly how I liked my coffee. It was one of the many reasons I felt that Rose and I were going to be friends for a very long time. But not if she kept giving me that look she was giving me in that moment.

No one said anything for a solid five minutes, because I wasn't going to just offer some information that I may or may not have, and evidently, Rose and Alice weren't going to ask any questions. So, there we sat, silent, sipping at our coffees. I was starting to become less of a zombie, so that was good, but then the actual denseness of the awkward atmosphere started to dawn on me, and I felt more concerned than I did when I first walked in. It hit me that I had done some pretty stupid shit the night before, and I was not necessarily proud of that.

A throat cleared and I looked up. Both girls were looking at me with expectant expressions, so I wasn't sure who had done it, but Rose was the first to speak up.

"So, are we just going to sit here silently for an hour, or are you gonna tell us about your little escapade with my brother?"

I groaned and dropped my head to the tabletop, covering my face with my forearms. "I don't know," i mumbled into the surface.

"I've gotta say, it was quite brilliant if it was premeditated, but I have a feeling it wasn't."

I shook my head. I lifted my head just enough to look at her and Alice. "I was drunk. He's hot. I wasn't thinking. It just kinda happened."

"He locked himself in his room the second we got back, and he hasn't come out since." She raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow at me. "I think you body shot the guy into a stupor."

I groaned again. "So drunk…" was all I could say.

"You seemed pretty put together, B," Alice said, her tone slightly sympathetic. "I've seen you 'bad decision making' drunk, and that definitely wasn't it."

All I could do was groan. I had a feeling that would be my response whenever it came to topics regarding Edward from now on.

}ACH{

 _September 13th, 2015_

 _2:37 pm_

I had just come out of my writing class that Rose and I had together. It was my last class of the day, thankfully. Mondays and Wednesdays were going to be pretty packed for me, since I had class starting at eight until this last class that ended at 2:35. Then I would go straight to the tattoo shop and work there until eight or nine, depending on how busy we were. I was excited to have a steady job doing what I loved, and I hoped I would be able to expand to do other events. I knew I would have to participate in some school events, since I was taking a photography class, and there was a good chance I could get other jobs from that, as well.

Rose and I were walking side by side, talking about how we were not looking forward to what was promising to be a very boring writing class. I had to take it for both my GE and my major, since I had to take it before I could take any higher level journalism classes. Rose needed it for her GE and it happened to fit into her schedule this semester, so here she was. I was glad we were together, though. It would at least make the semester a little more interesting, since I had already gotten a taste of Rose's sarcastic, under her breath remarks about topics in class. It was an actual struggle to not audibly giggle while sitting next to her.

Since we were going to the same place, we were heading toward one of the many parking lots, where Rose's car was parked. Rose would also be leaving the shop the same time I would, so our little carpooling thing was going to work out okay, I hoped. We were nearly to the car when my name was called from somewhere behind me. Both Rose and I turned to look, and I was surprised to see Riley grinning as he caught up to us.

"Hey, Riley," I greeted, giving him a brief one-armed hug.

"I just wanted to say happy birthday in person," he said, giving me a smile that once made me want to jump him where he stood. Honestly, it was still quite attractive, but it didn't have the same effect that it used to.

"Oh, thanks," I replied. There was several hours there where I had forgotten that it actually was my birthday. Alice had obviously woken me up with a horrifying reprise of the birthday song, and Rose had greeted me with the well wishes when we first met up before our class, but other than that, it hadn't really dawned on me that I was actually eighteen today. I was no longer jailbait, technically, but I had a strong feeling the nickname would stick. Unfortunately. I was going to get Edward back for that one of these days. If he ever spoke to me again.

"Riley, this is my friend Rose. Rose, this is Riley. We went to high school together." I knew Rose knew the more extended version of that story, but Riley didn't know that I had told her, so I was trying to keep it as normal as possible.

"Ouch, Bells," Riley joked, rubbing his chest over his heart. "Is that all that was between us?"

I thought I saw Rose roll her eyes, but I didn't quite catch it. "I know you two dated. She was just trying to be polite.

The two gave each other a strange look, and the silence that accompanied it was a little eery. Luckily, Rose had sense enough to break it first.

"I'll wait for you in the car, B," she offered. I nodded to her and watched as she got into her car, which was only a row over from where we were standing.

"You know Rosalie Cullen?" Riley asked as soon as Rose had closed the driver side door.

"Yeah, I work for her boyfriend, Emmett McCarty. That's actually where we're headed right now."

"Do you know her brother?" The way he asked the question sounded like he was hoping I didn't.

"Yeah, I know Edward. He works at the shop, too."

Riley's lips pursed together for a split second before his perma-grin took up residence on his face again. "So, what is it you do at the tattoo shop?"

"I take photos of tattoos and sketches for their portfolios and for their social media. I answer the phones if everyone else is busy." I shrugged. "They're paying me above minimum wage and I like all the people at the shop. I figure it's easy money and I get to hang out with friends. It's a win-win."

"You're friends with Edward Cullen?" He sounded slightly surprised.

"Well, we're civil. We're not sitting and braiding each other's hair, but we chat sometimes." That was definitely an overstatement, since Edward and I had had about two solid conversations, and one of them was right before the body shot incident. We didn't hate each other or anything, but we definitely were just civil. I was actually still hoping that we'd be civil after the little stunt I pulled Saturday night. Today would be the first time we'd see each other since then, and I was a little apprehensive about it.

Riley shrugged, apparently appeased by my explanation of my lack of relationship with Edward. Riley was the type of person that didn't let himself get hung up on anything for too long, and I had always been grateful for it.

"So, am I to assume you're not going to be free tonight for dinner?"

 _Well, that was out of nowhere._

"Um, probably," I thought out loud. "I'll probably be at the shop until late, and I'm sure Alice will want to take me out to eat or something."

"What about tomorrow, then?" He grinned at me, the same one that used to make me swoon. Weird how time changed your perspective of things.

"Are you trying to ask me on a date, Riley Biers?" His persistence was a little shocking, since he had never been like that when we were together. I wasn't bothered by his request to get together at some point, I was just a little surprised that it was so soon after running into each other again.

"I just wanna catch up, Bells. I genuinely did miss you." His tone was genuine and his grin was replaced with a soft, well-meaning smile.

I couldn't help but smiling back at him. "Fine, tomorrow."

"Cool. Meet me at Savin Bar at six?" I remembered the restaurant from Alice's and my first day in Boston, so I nodded. "See you tomorrow, Bella."

When I slid myself into the passenger seat of Rose's car, I could immediately feel her eyes burning a hole into the side of my head. I just buckled my seatbelt and shuffled my bag to my feet, doing my best to pretend that I couldn't feel her stare.

"What was that all about, B?" she finally asked as she backed out of her space.

I shrugged. "Riley just wanted to hang out and catch up. We're going to Savin tomorrow."

"Like a date?"

"I don't think so. I'm pretty sure he's not interested anymore. We just haven't seen each other in forever." I didn't have to feign the nonchalance in that statement. I felt relaxed and comfortable when it came to Riley. I was used to him and the way he held himself. He reminded me of home and the simplicity of small town life. I wanted my friend again, and I was pretty sure we were on the same page.

The eye roll Rose threw my way couldn't be missed. "That boy was looking you up and down like you were something to eat. He's definitely in this for more than a chat with an old friend."

I shrugged again but didn't say anything. He obviously found me attractive; we dated for a year and had plenty of sex. I wasn't unaware of our attraction to each other.

"Would you sleep with him if he asked?"

I honestly thought about it before answering her. "Yeah, probably. He's great in bed, and I trust him. I wouldn't date him again, though."

There was now a smirk pulling at Rose's lips. "Friends with benefits. I like it."

}ACH{

 _2:52 pm_

When we pulled into the back parking lot of the tattoo shop, I noticed Edward's car was there, and I couldn't help the nerves that started flopping around in my stomach. Running into Riley had given me a momentary reprieve from stressing out about having to face Edward again, but now the worrying was back in full force.

 _What the fuck am I going to say to him? 'Hey, sorry about licking salt off your skin and kinda sorta kissing you accidently on purpose when I took the lime. I was a wee bit drunk, so my inhibitions were totally gone, but I was also one hundred percent aware of what I was doing.'_

Yeah, so not going to go over well.

Rose noticed how tense I was as she threw the car in park. I was pretty sure I was gnawing a hole into my bottom lip with how fiercely I was biting on it. It was a bad habit when I was nervous, and my nerves were at an all time high in that moment. I wanted to just sit in the car until Rose was done in the shop. I was fully prepared to sit out there for five or six hours.

Rose sighed next to me. "B, don't worry about Edward. He probably won't even say anything. I can almost guarantee Irina is in there, hanging onto Edward like white on rice, so you don't have to worry about anything. Edward's a moody son of a bitch-sorry, Ma-but he's not particularly fond of confrontation. It'll be fine."

The mention of Irina made me cringe, but I tried to put on my game face. I knew Rose was right; Edward would be busy with work and his girlfriend, and I could just talk to Rose and Em and everyone else, so I wouldn't even have to talk to him outside of a professional context. Hopefully we could both be adults about this and completely ignore what I may or may not have done on Saturday night.

 _That's totally the adult thing to do, right?_

 _Yeah, right, Bella. Keep telling yourself that._

 _Hey! I've only been an adult for like fifteen hours. Cut me some slack._

I took a deep breath and hurled myself out of the car, because otherwise I would have just sat there all day. I grabbed my bag, just in case I had time to work on homework that my writing teacher had already assigned. Rose and I walked through the back door of the shop and I made a beeline for my seat at the front desk. Irina was definitely there, hanging on Edward's arm like a baby sloth, but I pretended that I didn't see either of them, and said hi to Jake and Leah instead. Em came over and gave me a hug and told me what he wanted me to do today. He said he was taking it easy on me since it was my birthday, which he made sure to announce very loudly to everyone in the shop.

The few customers hanging out and waiting or getting tattooed sent out a happy birthday wish at varying degrees of enthusiasm. Leah tossed me one of her rare smiles and gave me a quiet wish, while her cousin stopped his machine in order to get up and give me a hug. After the small amount of fanfare, I was able to settle into my place at the front desk and pull out the book we had to read for English. I had already read Wuthering Heights before, but I just wanted to brush up on it, since it had been a few years since then.

I let everyone know just to call me over when they were either finished with their pieces or were at a good transition point so I could take pictures. They all gave me barely-there nods, but I knew they heard me, so I immersed myself in the world of Heathcliff and Catherine in between answering the phone and scheduling appointments for people that wanted them. I mostly just kicked back, though, and got through a pretty good chunk of the book before Jake called me over to take the final picture of this piece he'd been working on for three sessions now.

I snapped a few pictures of it before letting the client know to come back in a few weeks when it was all healed so I could get really clean photos. As soon as I was done with Jake's client, another person approached the front desk, looking for Edward. I remembered scheduling this guy yesterday as Edward's four o'clock today, so I let him know to take a seat until Edward was ready for him.

"You're four o'clock is here," I let him know, trying hard to ignore Irina's presence, even though I could feel the glare that threatened to burn a hole into the side of my face.

"What's his name again?" Edward asked, not looking up from the sketch he seemed to be finishing up.

"Randy."

Edward nodded. "Let him know I'm just finishing his piece, and I'll come out in just a minute."

"I'm taking that as my cue to leave. I hate sitting through these long pieces," Triple Dub announced, finally detaching herself from her boyfriend.

"No one told you you had to be here," Leah butted in, not turning from where she was working on a sketch herself. I knew she had someone scheduled to come in at five, so she was probably making tweaks on that one.

"Eddie's here, so I'm here," she huffed, like this was a normal thing that all girlfriends do. Most people found it acceptable to be apart from the significant others for a few days, but, hey, to each their own.

"I find it hard to believe you have nothing better to do than hang around here and do nothing for several hours a day."

"Leah, that's enough," Jake warned, eyeing his cousin from where he was cleaning up his station. He was done with scheduled appointments for the day, so he'd be taking any walk-ins that came by.

I couldn't see it, but I was pretty sure Leah gave Jake a pretty mean eye roll that I would have snickered at her for if Irina wasn't still looking straight at me, despite the fact that I hadn't spoken for several moments. She seemed to be fixated on me, for some reason, and it really was very unnerving. There was a strong feeling that she was plotting ways to kill me in my sleep.

"Irina, just go," Edward finally ordered, still not taking his eyes off his work. "I'll see you tomorrow." Irina smiled and placed a cringe-worthy kiss on his cheek before flouncing off through the shop. Some of the tension that had seemed to be here since I walked in finally dissipated, and I barely held in a relieved sigh.

I scurried my way back to the front as quickly as possible, and I informed Randy that Edward would come out for him in just a few minutes. I retook my place in my chair, my book spread open on the flat surface, and my eyes flying over the words on the page. There were several minutes where the people and the shop faded away and I recreated Wuthering Heights in my head, before Edward came and broke the spell. He called Randy back, but his eyes were locked on me when I glanced up. His normally shining green eyes were hard around the edges, and there was a slight furrow in his brow. His body seemed stiff in general, like he was on edge, even though he was the one who had been staring at me. I wasn't quite sure what that was about, and it wasn't like I'd be able to find out any time soon.

}ACH{

 _September 14th, 2015_

 _5:42 pm_

When I got home from the shop yesterday, I had immediately told Alice about my impending meet up with Riley the next day. She had just wiggled her eyebrows at me suggestively before asking me if I wanted her help picking out an outfit. I shrugged her off, saying we were just going to that bar down the street. Besides, this was just a casual dinner between old friends that hadn't seen each other in a couple years. I was still trying to convince myself of that as I walked into the aforementioned restaurant.

My eyes roamed, seeing if I could find Riley, if he was even here yet, but my eyes caught onto Kate's before I could get any further. She smiled at me and bustled over to where I was by the door and hooked her arm through mine.

"Bella! Back so soon? Where's Alice?" she asked, her curiosity genuine. I had actually liked Kate that first day that we met, so I was glad she was here tonight. It was comforting having a familiar face around.

"She's actually back at the dorm," I said. "I'm here to have dinner with an old friend."

"Maybe I seated them already," she said. "What's their name?"

"Riley."

Her eyes bugged just slightly. "As in Riley Biers? As in that hotty I just seated about two minutes ago who has been the center of every girl's fantasy since he graced us with his presence on campus?"

I couldn't help but laugh at her vivid description of my ex-boyfriend. "That's the one."

She gave a soft gasp. "Are you two on a date tonight?"

I shook my head. "No, we're just catching up. We knew each other back in our hometown. We went to high school together."

"So you're old friends?"

"I mean, we were more than that, but we broke things off when he went off to college. We're still friends, though."

"Damn, Bella. Riley is one of the hottest pieces of ass I have ever had the pleasure of laying eyes on. Aside from Edward, of course. Do you know if he's seeing anyone?"

Another chuckle escaped at Kate's declaration. "I don't think he is."

She got this happy little glint in her eye before finally showing me to the table that Riley was already seated at. There was a tall glass of beer sat in front of him, his eyes scrolling across the menu that he had open on the table. He must have heard our approach, because he looked up and smiled when he saw me. I took a seat across from him and returned his smile as Kate excused herself to get me a glass of soda that I requested.

"You look good, Bella," Riley said, taking a sip of his beer. There was this slightly glassy look in his eyes that I had seen enough times in high school to know that he was at least a little buzzed.

"Thank you," I replied, glancing down at the olive colored tank top and light wash jeans I had on. It wasn't anything fancy, considering we were at a bar, but it was nicer than anything I ever wore in Forks.

We chatted idly about how our second day of classes had been while Kate brought over the water I had asked for as well as a glass of white wine that I hadn't. She gave me a wink and assured me that no one was the wiser, and that the drink was on the house. I saw the appreciative way that Riley looked at her as she spoke to me and took our orders, and I was relieved that there was no residual feelings of jealousy or anything stupid like that. I could actually just be friends with Riley, and I found that I was excited for that prospect.

I had kept telling Rose and Alice that I would sleep with Riley if it was what we both wanted, because I still found him attractive and trusted him. He was great to me for that year as my boyfriend, and I had always appreciated his casual friendship before that. I was pleasantly surprised to realize as I sat there that I actually had no desire to be intimate with him ever again. He was still the same loyal, funny guy that I had known in Washington, and he was still ridiculously attractive, obviously, but there was no feelings of attraction. Everything about our interactions screamed platonic friendship, and I was perfectly content with that. There was no reason to mix up anything with intimacy between the two of us if neither one of use were chomping at the bit for it. We joked and laughed and teased and reminisced. We talked about our lives since we had last seen each other. And it was great. We parted at the end of the night with a friendly hug when he dropped me off in front of my building with a promise for the two of us and some friends to hang out sometime.

When I walked into our room, Alice was sitting on her bed, nail polish in her hand, and her laptop open in front of her. I could hear the dialogue of Law and Order: SVU playing through the speakers, and immediately knew she was refreshing on the last season on Netflix before the new season aired in a week.

"So, either you chickened out on getting laid, or Riley has turned into some massive douche bag," she said, not looking up from her careful little strokes across her fingernails.

I shook my head as I stepped out of my shoes. "Neither. We're friends, Alice, that's all. I don't want anything more with him."

"Does he feel the same way?" She looked up at me with a raised brow.

"Given the way he kept staring at that Bree chick as soon as she walked into the room, I'm gonna say yes." I couldn't help but chuckle at the memory of his sudden change in demeanor as soon as he saw her. The boy had it bad for the demure brunette, and I thought it was the most adorable thing ever.

"That girl that works for housing?"

I nodded.

"Well, you can't say that he doesn't have a type. But at least she's just as pretty as you are. And she seemed really nice. Did he have the balls to talk to her?"

I couldn't help but laugh. "Hell no. The Riley we know disappeared as soon as she was in sight. He clammed up and started compulsively swallowing, which was weird as hell. When I asked him if he'd ever talked to her, he said not outside of class. I tried to get him to go say hi, but he refused. It was the strangest thing."

Alice started giggling uncontrollably, having to put away her nail polish. "That shit is too funny. I never thought there'd be a day when Riley Biers was afraid to talk to a girl."

"We need to get them together."

"Oh, definitely. I'll talk to Rose."

* * *

 **So there's chapter six. I promise a little bit of a more civil E/B relationship will start to develop, but they've got to tolerate each other before they can actually like each other. Sexual attraction alone is not enough. At least, not for me it isn't.**

 **I hope everyone had a good Halloween, and I hope everyone in the US has a good Thanksgiving. Hopefully I will see you all before then, but if I don't Happy Thanksgiving! Eat too much and lay around all day. That's what I'll be doing ;D**

 **As always, leave me your reviews, they are always much appreciated. I reply to each and every one of them, and if I accidentally miss it, I do sincerely apologize. I love everything you guys have to say. And if you have any suggestions for future chapters, I always take them into consideration :)**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	7. I Don't Like Your Girlfriend

**Hey, everyone. Sorry for the bit of a wait. I've been super busy with school lately, but thankfully I got almost the whole week of Thanksgiving off, so I was able to get some writing done. Updates might be a little sparse until the semester is over in about a month, but I promise to try my best to get at lest two more updates out before Christmas. Fingers crossed.**

 **So, I hope those of you in the States had a good holiday. I know I ate way too much, and I will be living off of leftovers for like a week. Not a bad way to go about things, though.**

 **Without further ado, here is chapter 7.**

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

 **I DON'T LIKE YOUR GIRLFRIEND**

 _September 28th, 2015_

 _4:25 pm_

Rose and I sat in her living room, the TV on in the background as we hammered out a written analysis of symbols in the book that we were required to read for class. Our assignment was due Friday, and like most people, we had put it off until almost the last minute. We both had our laptops propped open with several tabs pulled up on Googled pages of what symbols there even were in the novel. We had a shared document where we were putting all the information that we found so we could compile it into an actual, decent-looking assignment before we turned it in in a few days.

Rose and I spent a lot of our free time together now, helping each other out with work and just hanging out. Alice had been spending more time with Jasper this last week, plus her class schedule pretty much conflicted with mine, so I didn't really see her until the weekends and when I got back from the shop at the end of the day. We had one class together, so I was guaranteed at least three hours a week with her, at least. In the meantime, Rose and I had become really good friends. When we weren't hurrying to get assignments done, we talked about our lives and things we did and just got to know each other. She told me a lot about growing up with Edward and how she met Emmett. I told her about how I jumped between parents and eventually settled with Charlie.

"So have you seen Riley anymore since that night you established that you weren't going to fuck each other?" Well, Rose was never one to mince words. Honestly, it was one of my favorite things about her.

"I have, around school. He promised to help me with math when I need it, and I have an exam coming up, so I will definitely been hitting him up," I admitted. I was not ashamed of my mathematical handicap, and I was lucky enough to have a friend that happened to be really good at it. I was not stupid enough to pass up that offer.

"So you're really not going to be anything more than friends?"

I shook my head and pushed my laptop aside. "Nah, he's a good friend. And he's into that Bree chick. I wouldn't get in the way of that."

Edward walked in in that moment, glancing at me and offering a small smile before greeting his sister. He headed into the kitchen and rummaged around the fridge as Rose continued our conversation.

"But you're still going to be seeing him, right? Because he is very easy on the eyes and seems like a great person to have around."

I couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out. "You're right, he is very easy on the eyes. The first time I saw that man, shirtless. Oh dear."

Rose laughed with me. "I thought the same thing the first time I saw Emmett." She fanned herself.

The fridge door slammed. "Goddammit, Rose. Please stop."

"Oh shush, like I haven't heard you going on and on about all the girls you've fucked. 'Damn, Em, you should've seen her tits. They were fake as hell, but her doctor did a good job.'" She dropped her voice to imitate her brother and added a weird, male swagger to her shoulders. I would've laughed if the image of Edward talking about other women's bodies wasn't making me kind of nauseous.

"Whatever, I'll be in my room." He walked past the living room with a can of soda and a bag of chips in his hands.

"Is he okay?" I asked Rose. I was used to Edward being kind of distant and quiet, but I had never heard him snap like that before. We had become civil and somewhat pleasant toward one another in the last few weeks, and he typically at least made small talk with me about classes or something equally mundane before stalking off.

"Yeah, he's just been a little grumpy since he broke up with Irina. I think he's sex deprived or something."

"Wait, what?" This was news to me. I had noticed that Irina stopped coming around the shop, but I just figured someone had complained enough for Edward to finally tell her to not hang around the shop anymore. I hadn't realized she wasn't there because they weren't together anymore.

"Yeah, Edward dumped her ass about a week ago. Thank Buddha, because I was really this close to punching her," she explained, holding her thumb and first finger a hairsbreadth apart. I couldn't help but giggle, because I had the same feeling when we were in the shop with her. Just her voice grated on my nerves, and her dumb comments just made it so much worse. I was pretty relieved that I wouldn't have to see her around anymore.

"Well, I'm glad she's gone."

"Who? The Wicked Witch of the West?" Alice asked, bursting through the apartment door. We had taken to just walking into Rose's apartment in the last couple of weeks, since we were over here a lot of the time anyways.

"You knew about that?" I asked. Was I actually the last person to find out? I worked with the guy, for fuck's sake.

"Well, yeah, I actually talk to Edward." She shrugged as she dropped her bag on the coffee table, like I knew her and Edward were best buds, or something. "So, can you stop pretending you're not totally into him, now?"

I rolled my eyes. There had been a nonstop onslaught of her suggestions over the last few weeks. "I'm not 'totally into him', Al. We've been over this."

She waved her hand at me to dismiss what I had just said. "Yeah, yeah. I'll get it out of you eventually."

}ACH{

 _October 2nd, 2015_

Alice and I had just finished up our first math exam, so we headed down the bar Kate worked at to see if she'd slip us some alcohol and grab some burgers. We came here at least once a week now, usually with Rose or Riley or both. We had all gotten to know Kate a little better, since she spent a lot of her downtime talking with us and handing out. Today, she came over as soon as she saw Alice and I at our usual booth.

She already had two bottles of Stella Artois in her hands, tops popped off. She smiled as she placed them on the table in front of each of us, sliding into the empty seat next to me.

"Bella! I have great news for you," Kate beamed.

"What is this news?"

"Tanya, my cousin that's getting married, wants to book you to take her photos. She's got two thousand set aside for a photographer, so it's yours if you want it."

My eyes nearly bugged out of my head, and a little bit of beer may have dribbled out of my mouth. I wiped my face with a napkin before addressing her. "Are you serious? That's a lot for a photographer."

Kate rolled her eyes. "The crazy woman had four thousand, but she decided using a couple of it for her dress was more important. Booking you for two is going to be like a blessing for her."

"When's her wedding?" Alice asked, looking just as excited as Kate about the prospect of a job for me. I was making decent money working for Emmett and Rose, but a two thousand dollar job would be amazing.

"November fourteenth. The ceremony starts at four. She wants sunset photos, since her alter is in front of a bunch windows, right where the sun sets."

"Sounds beautiful. I'm guessing she'll want me there early."

"Yeah, she wants to meet you beforehand, too. Here's her number," she said, pulling a napkin from in front of me and jotting down the number. "She's usually free during the week. She works from home, so you're not really disturbing her."

I thanked Kate and pocketed the number. I'd call Tanya when we got back to the dorms. After sitting and chatting for a bit, Alice and I headed back. I was anxious to call Tanya and take a nap, and Alice had another class to get to in about half an hour.

As soon as Alice was out the door, I dialed the number Kate had given me and pressed the phone to my ear. On the third ring, the line picked up, and I could immediately hear some sort of classical music playing in the background.

"Hello?"

"Hi, I'm looking for Tanya."

"This is she."

"Hi, I'm Bella Swan. I know your cousin, Kate. She told me you'd be interested in having me do the photography for your wedding."

"Oh! Bella! I was hoping you'd call soon. I'm so glad you're willing to do this."

We set up a time to meet during the week next week. Her weekends were pretty full with hashing out details for the wedding, and it was already Friday, so she assumed I already had plans for the evening. Honestly, the only thing I had going was going over to Rose's to hang out and watch a movie, which could have been cancelled.

After hanging up with Tanya, I set my phone on the charger and got into my bed. It was only one in the afternoon, so I was good to take a nap for an hour or two before getting my ass in gear for the rest of the day. I had early classes on Fridays, for some god forsaken reason, and it always required a nap at some point in the day.

I dozed off pretty quickly, but I was roused unexpectedly only a half hour or so later. My phone was ringing on my desk, and I had forgotten to turn the sound off when I got back to the dorms. I turned it on when we were in the bar because it was so loud, and I didn't want to miss a call if it was my dad or something.

I wiped the sleep out of my eyes as I looked at the caller ID and was surprised to see that it was Edward's name that popped up. I only had his number because we worked together, and we never had a need to contact each other before, so his call was a bit strange. I answered anyway,just in case the shop was suddenly slammed and he needed me to come in and help.

"Hello?" I answered and cringed when my voice came out slightly rough. I cleared my throat as he responded.

"JB?" I rolled my eyes at the nickname, upset that it was still sticking around. I was already eighteen, for Christ's sake.

"Yes, Edward?"

"Are you busy?" He seemed slightly uncomfortable that he even had to call me in the first place, so I was naturally curious as to why he called.

"No, I was just napping. What's up?"

"I'm sorry to ask, but is there any way you could come pick me up? My car died on my way home from my parents' house. Rose and Em are busy at the shop, and both my parents are at work."

I was already swinging my legs off the edge of my bed. "Sure. Where are you?"

He gave me quick directions to the highway he was on and close landmarks. I jotted them down on a sticky note that I shoved in my pocket.

"I'll be there as soon as I can," I told him, shoving my feet into the boots I had been wearing earlier in the day.

"Call me if you get lost or anything."

"Will do."

As soon as we hung up, I had my bag in my hands and the keys to my car. I hadn't had to drive my baby since the week prior, when Al and I had made a run to the grocery store late at night for some ice cream, so I hoped the battery still worked. It needed a jump sometimes when it had been sitting for awhile, and I didn't really have to resources for that right now.

Luckily, it started right up when I turned the key, and it rumbled to life. I nearly had a full tank of gas, so I just pulled out of the parking lot and found the closest freeway entrance. I listened to the radio as I drove, finally having found some decent stations in Boston over the last few weeks.

The weather had started to change, so the trees all over the city were taking on various shades of yellows and reds, and the leaves were starting to drift to the ground. It was brisk during the day now, with the high usually only getting to the mid sixties before dropping into the forties overnight. We had had a few rain showers since it got colder, which meant I had to break out the pairs of boots that I owned, since my Converse did not take too kindly to the water. Alice was excited to finally wear autumn outfits, while I was just content to bundle up in hoodies and knit sweater. I wasn't really used to the warm summers that they had here in Boston, so I was glad to be back in a climate that I was familiar with.

By the time I finally reached the highway Edward said he was stuck on, it was past three. I hadn't realized how far outside of Boston his parents lived. Luckily, after only being on this highway for about ten minutes, I stumbled across Edward's car, his black 1967 Chevy Impala. All I could think about was Supernatural when I looked at it, but it suited Edward. I could never see his lean, tattooed body in some Volvo or something like Rose drove.

I pulled up just behind his car after making a U-turn. He hopped out of the car and made his way to the passenger side of mine. He looked too good in his well-fit jeans and plain grey t-shirt that stretched across the muscles of his shoulders and chest. He had on a black leather jacket over it to shield himself from the wind that was picking up with the setting sun.

"Hey, thanks for come out here. Do you mind if we head back to my parents' house? It's only fifteen minutes back up the road." He buckled his seatbelt while I took a second to really digest the fact that Edward was in my car. Cool, hot as hell, lean, tall, too cool for anything Edward Cullen was sitting in my kind of beat up 1996 Honda Accord. He seemed out of place in my tiny car and the worn seats.

"Yeah, just tell me where to go." I pulled back out onto the road, the same way that I had been going to get here. We sat in silence for a few minutes, just listening to some overplayed pop song that was on the radio. I saw his fingers tap along to the beat of the song on his knee, and I tried very hard not to continuously glance at them. They were so long and nimble and I couldn't help but imagine what they could do to a girl's body.

That thought had me clenching my thighs together and focusing my eyes strictly on the road ahead of me. I suffered my pervy little thoughts in silence for a few more minutes until Edward spoke up.

"There's a stop sign in about half a mile. Turn right at it."

I nodded my acknowledgement as I kept my eyes facing forward. I was expecting silence until he had to give me more directions, but he spoke up again after only a few moments of quiet.

"Do you not like me or something, JB?"

I was shocked by his question and his forwardness, so I tried to play off my suprise with humor, like one tends to do.

"I mean, I'm not the biggest fan of the JB thing, if that's what you're asking." I smirked at him and glanced over from the corner of my eye.

I could have sworn he rolled his eyes, and the similarities between him and Rose in that moment were truly uncanny. It was actually a little scary. "No one likes their nickname. That's the point of the nickname. But, no, I just meant in general."

"Why would you think that I don't like you? I drove out here to get you, didn't I?"

"Thank you again for that, by the way. But, you just kind of seem to avoid me whenever we're in the same room together."

"Well, honestly, I'd get a death glare from Irina every time we were in the same room together, so I thought staying away from you was best for everyone's health," I admitted, glancing over to see his mildly upset expression. I wasn't sure if he was upset by my mention of his ex-girlfriend or my honesty, but I was hoping it was the former. I would just tell myself it was.

"We've been broken up for a little while, now."

I nodded. "I know, but I only found out about a week ago. I don't actively avoid you, Edward. I just don't think we really have anything to speak to each other about, so why force a conversation?"

He was quiet for a few moments, besides when he instructed me to take a left at the next stop sign. He finally spoke up just after I made the turn. "Do I make you uncomfortable?"

I felt my eyes furrow together, and I glanced at him in confusion. "No? I mean, besides the Irina thing, I've never felt uncomfortable around you."

 _Except for that first time I met you, and that time in the kitchen of your apartment and all I could think about was the way just looking at your body made my body feel._

Edward just nodded and stared ahead. He muttered something about his parents' house coming up in a few more blocks. I let him brood in silence, not really wanting to push this already strange conversation any further. Fortunately, or unfortunately, I didn't have to, and Edward spoke again of his own accord.

"Do you think maybe we could be friends, JB? Stop this weird avoidance thing?"

His request was the most surprising thing I had heard from him yet, and I didn't know how I felt about my easy acceptance of his truce. Edward and I had a weird mutual avoidance but acknowledgement of each other, as it had been since we met, and I wasn't sure how an actual effort into a casual friendship would go, but I was willing to try. Edward seemed like a good person to have in your corner if it came down to it, and he seemed like a genuinely good guy behind all the rumors and his rough exterior. I could get used to his type of dry humor and his girl talk, much like I had gotten used to Emmett's.

"Sure, I'd like that, Edward."

I saw a smile touch his lips for a split second before he gestured up ahead with a flick of his hand. "My parents house is just three houses ahead. You can pull into the driveway. We'll go in through the garage."

I did as he instructed, and marveled at the immaculate structure that came into my view as the trees on the street broke. The Cullen's home was a masterpiece, and I was trying to take in the slate grey brick and wood finishes on the exterior of the house, as well as the big, bare windows that allowed you to see into their contemporary designed living room. Their lawn was even perfect, with a fountain in the middle of the circular driveway and little marble statues on the walk up to the front door. I parked right in front of the garage, and I cringed to think about what my crappy little car looked like next to this probably million dollar home.

Edward hopped out and put in a code on a little number panel by the garage door. My jaw dropped as the sliding panel revealed black marble floors against fluorescent lighting, and two of the nicest cars I had ever seen parked inside. One was a brand new Tesla Model S in slate grey, and the other was a Jaguar XF in white. I knew those cars weren't cheap, and they were nicer than anything I ever hoped of owning. If I hadn't known the extent of Edward's family's wealth before, I certainly did now.

Edward waved me over, and I swallowed nervously as I pulled my keys out of my car and exited to go into the garage with him. I personally felt like a less worthy human being as I passed by the cars, in my ripped jeans, plain long sleeve, grey jacket, and twenty dollar boots from Target. Even though Edward was dressed just as casually, I had a feeling his jeans were expensive, and his shirt was probably something ridiculous like Gucci, and his jacket was probably made out of real leather. My significance in the world compared to the Cullens went way down in that moment.

We went in through a door that led to the laundry room, where even their washer and dryer were top of the line, and the space was nearly as large as my room in my dad's house. It seemed to also double as a mud room, because all of the family's large winter coats and heavy duty boots were kept neatly in a corner. I wiped my feet on a little mat that was just inside the door, because, even though I hadn't walked through any of the elements recently, I felt like there was no question that my shoes needed to be wiped off before entering the domain that was Edward's home.

The laundry room opened into a short hallway, with what looked like a bathroom and another closed door in the same space. I walked into the rest of the house behind Edward, closing the laundry room door behind me. I followed him out into a more open area, which led into one of the most open, gourmet kitchens I had ever laid eyes on. Everything was light wood and dark countertops. The appliances were all brushed stainless steel, and the floors were a dark hardwood. There was an island that seated four, as well as a little corner with a small kitchen table. The little nook the table was in was surrounded by windows, which looked out over the giant backyard, which looked like opened out onto a golf course.

"Edward, is that you, dear?" came a very warm, kind voice. I looked around and noticed a very well-dressed woman descending a flight of stairs I was just now noticing, even though I knew from the exterior that the house had three stories.

The woman, who I assumed was Edward and Rosalie's mother, was just as beautiful as her daughter, but had Edward's coppery colored hair and sparkling green eyes. She was thin and shapely in all the right places, and dressed extraordinarily well in dark jeans, a cream colored, knit sweater, dark, knee-high boots, and a fresh face with minimal makeup. Even in her assumingly earlier forties, she had me beat in the beauty department. Although, how could I expect anything less from the woman that birthed Edward and Rosalie, two of the most beautiful human beings I had ever seen.

"Yeah, Ma. You're supposed to be at work." Edward leaned against one of the counters as I stood awkwardly near the entrance to the hallway. I wasn't sure how I was supposed to behave in his home, especially since his mother was now standing in front of me. If I had been with Rose, this would have gone so much better.

"Well, I rushed home as soon as I got your message. I was going to go get you, but I figured I'd wait to see if you still needed it. But, it looks like you got along just as well without me." She smiled in my direction as her eyes appraised me briefly. Once she got back to my face, her smile had turned into a warm, genuine one, and I felt some of the tension I was harboring lighten. I still felt totally unworthy standing in her home, though.

"Yeah, J-Bella came and got me. Rose and Em were busy at the shop," Edward told her. "I was gonna call you, but my phone died while I was waiting out there, and I didn't have a charger. I thought I'd come back here and grab one and call you and Dad to let you know what was going on."

It was kind of strange to hear Edward utter so many words without any snide comments or sexual innuendos coming out. I figured he could act like a normal twenty-something year old around other adults, but I was used to his crass nature. Apparently his parents still got the tame side of Edward. I guess he had to if he got his way as often as Rose said he did.

"And who might Bella be, exactly?" She obviously knew who I was, seeing as I was standing right here, awkwardly watching her and Edward's exchange, but I knew she was asking what my status was in his life. How important was I that he was calling me to come pick him up outside of Boston? "Is she a new girlfriend, dear? Because she is much prettier than Irina."

I could feel my face heating at her words, both from her assuming that I was her son's new flavor of the month and her compliment. Edward sounded like he was choking next to me, but a few coughs and he was correcting his mother.

"No, Mom. Bella is a friend. Her and Rose are close. She works at the shop. Bella, this is my mother, Esme."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Cullen," I finally spoke, extending my hand for her to shake.

She batted my hand away with a smile. "Oh, dear, I prefer hugs," she stated, pulling me into one. "And Mrs. Cullen is my rotten mother-in-law. Please call me Esme."

I nodded dumbly as she released me from her grasp and took a step or two back. Since I was having some sort of weird problem with forming words, she continued the conversation.

"So, are you a tattoo artist, too? Or do you do piercings, like Rose?" she asked. I could see her eyes roaming over my body again, probably looking for tattoos or piercings, like were typical on her children. I didn't have any tattoos and my only piercings besides my ears were well hidden beneath clothes, which just made me blush more.

"I take pictures for the shop for the artists' portfolios," I amended quickly, not wanting to let her wonder. "I'm studying photography at school, so it's building up my own portfolio, as well."

Her eyes lit up bright. "Oh dear, that's wonderful. I'm sure you're just fantastic. So you go to UMass, too?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I'm a journalism major with a minor in photography."

"Well, I'd love to see some of your work, sometime. I bet it's beautiful." She smiled and looked like she wanted to pull me into another hug.

"She's pretty good. I'm sure Rose will show you all sorts of stuff if you ask," Edward interjected. "I'm gonna go get my charger." That blunt Edward I knew much better than the polite one was showing through again, and I felt a bit more at ease. Short and stiff I could do. I wasn't so sure what to do with polite and warm.

As soon as he had disappeared up the stairs, Esme turned to me with the same bright smile. "So, dear, you and Rose are close?"

"Yeah, we've gotten to know each other pretty well. We're together a lot of the time, the two of us and my good friend, Alice."

Esme seemed to sag with an unknown relief. "Oh, good. I thought that girl would never meet any other girls to be friends with. She's always hung out with her brother and his friends, and now Emmett's friends. I'm glad she has you and this Alice girl."

It's funny how Rose had mentioned the same thing just a few weeks before. Her and her mother seemed to be on the same wavelength.

"I hope we'll be seeing more of you, Bella. You seem like a lovely woman." It seemed like a strange thing to say, but coming from Esme, I could tell that it was sincere.

"Thank you, Esme." It was all I could really say about her comment. I was afraid of a prolonged, awkward silence, but Edward reappeared in that moment, his phone charger in one hand and his car keys in the other.

"Ma, can you get my car back here? Rose is coming by next weekend, so I'll grab it then."

"Of course, honey. I'll have your dad swing by and take a look at it when he gets out of work."

"Thanks. Sorry to just take off, but we're having a movie night at the apartment. I'll fix it up next weekend."

"Oh, a movie night! Are you going to be there tonight, Bella?"

 _Oh, she's addressing me again. Does she do that often to new people in her house that have shown up unannounced._

"Uh, yeah," I said quickly. "Alice and I always go."

"Well, have fun kids! Call me when you get back safely, Edward."

"Yeah, Ma."

}ACH{

 _6:27 pm_

"We come bearing food," I announced as Edward and I walked through the front door of his apartment. Rose was in the kitchen, her head in the fridge, presumably looking for beers and other drinks. Emmett, Alice, and Jasper, who was a new addition, were sat on the couch, kicked back, watching a rerun of Friends, which was an addiction we all apparently shared. We had learned very early on in our friendship that we were all prone to making references to the show, and when all of us understood them, it was golden.

Edward and I set the bags of Chinese takeout on the sill of the baker's window and took out all the boxes of meats, rice, and chow mein. As everyone crowded around to make their plates, Rose saddled up beside me.

"So, my mother has requested that you and Alice accompany back home next weekend and spend it with us. You must have made some impression, Bella." The little smirk she gave me probably had something to do with my being at their house with her brother, but I wasn't willing to put any effort into figuring it out for sure.

"Mom's just glad that you finally have some friends," Edward snickered, smirking at his sister from the other side of the counter.

Rose just rolled her eyes at her brother. "Anyways, I leave on Friday afternoons and come back Sunday evening, if that's alright with you two."

I nodded and Alice clapped her hands. "Oh, good. A whole weekend at the Cullen's house. How was it, Bella? I've always imagined they live in this old Victorian home with a wrap around porch and a porch swing."

I tried to stifle my laugh, but it was a losing battle. "Oh, you're in for a big surprise. Their house is this contemporary beast. It's, like, three stories of hardwood floors and sleek furniture."

Alice's eyes widened. "Oh, geez. Have you guys always lived there?" she asked Rose.

She shook her head. "No, we moved when I was a freshman in high school. We used to live in a townhouse type home closer to Boston, but my parents decided to move to a less populated area."

"Well, I'm excited to see it, then. Thanks for the invite, Rose."

After everyone had gathered their food, we settled in on the couches and the floor when there was no more room. Rose and Emmett took up the small couch, and Jasper and Alice sat in the two chairs that were situated next to each other. Edward and I took to the floor, our backs propped up against the coffee table with our food in our laps, so we could face the TV. We had chosen to watch a scary movie, so Alice had brought Sinister from our collection in the dorm. Alice and I had already seen it, but it had been awhile, and I was a jumper when something happened on TV.

I quickly finished my food and set my plate on the table behind me. I sat cross-legged and watched the movie, trying to remind myself when all the suspenseful parts took place so I wouldn't be quite so startled. Unfortunately, that didn't really happen. I'm a bundle of nerves when scary movies are in the mix, and the first sign of a scare, I was jumping right into Edward, who looked surprised to say the least. His eyebrows furrowed at me, and I just shrugged at him to say that I couldn't help it and I scared easily. He just smirked at me and gave his attention back to the TV screen,

Not more than five minutes later, I was back into his side, having jumped again from yet another scene. He chuckled at me and simply rested his arm behind me on the coffee table, offering me a space when I scared. I was just going to take that as a sign of our agreed upon friendship, even though the heat radiating from his arm against my neck was making me break out in goosebumps. His close proximity was at least helping with distracting me from the movie, so I calmed down a little while it got tense, but I was now buzzing because of his presence.

Thankfully, I was able to make it through the rest of the film without ending up in Edward's lap, although I wouldn't have been opposed to that. Alice and I helped clean up and pack away left overs before heading to back to the dorms for the night.

}ACH{

 _October 9th, 2015_

 _9:21 am_

"Rose is out front," Alice told me, hiking her weekend bag up over her shoulder. I hurriedly shoved the last of my things into my bag and zipped it up. I also grabbed my school bag, because Rose and I had some English homework due at the beginning of the next week that I was hoping we'd be able to do over the weekend.

We headed out and down the elevator. As soon as we opened up the door to step outside, Alice called out, "Shotgun!" and trotted over to Rose's car, where the trunk was already popped open. I rolled my eyes at Al's shenanigans, but I followed after her, closing the trunk when I was done. I slid into the back seat that was closest to the curb, and was slightly surprised when I saw Edward sitting in the other seat. It took me a second to remember that he had told his mom he'd be back this weekend to fix his car up and bring it back to school.

"Hey," I greeted him, sending him a soft smile as I closed the door. We had become somewhat more comfortable around each other since we had made our friendship truce, but I still wasn't willing to bare my soul or something to him. We were still kind of awkward around one another, but we were civil, even friendly, when we were in the same space. It mainly just made working together more easy on the both of us, and cleared some of the tension when I was in his apartment when he got back from work or class. It was working out fine so far, though.

"Hey, JB," he nodded back, quickly flashing me a smile and turning his head to look out his own window. I wanted to sigh at the lack of communication, but I kept it in and turned to Rose, who was already pulling away from the curb.

"Hey, you're looking surprisingly chipper this morning," I noted. Rose was not a morning person, and she usually tried not to be awake nine-thirty, if at all possible, but today she seemed energized. She had a small smile tugging at her lips and she looked alert and awake. There was even some upbeat pop song playing through the radio, and that was definitely not her choice of music in the morning.

"I haven't been back home since the semester started, so I'm just excited to see my parents," she reasoned, catching my eye in the rearview mirror. "And Eddie's promised to get us coffee, so I'm particularly happy about that." Rose said this with a mirthful glint in her eyes. I didn't really know what that was about, and Alice looked none the wiser either, so I chose to ignore it. Must just be a sibling thing.

"Wow," I said, turning to look at Edward, who was already glancing at me, "that's nice of you to offer." He just shrugged.

"She's driving me back to get my car. And it's my fault that you're being dragged to our house for the weekend. I figured I owed you both."

"Wait, _I_ still get coffee, right?" Alice interjected, sounding pouty at the thought of not getting her favorite beverage.

"Yeah, Squirt, you get coffee, too."

"Sweet!"

* * *

 **Ok, so there's the next chapter. It's a little filler-y until things start to pick up more. Next chapter will have the weekend and maybe a little bit of Halloween, if I'm able to fit it in. I'm gonna be jumping in the timeline a little bit, just because I don't think it's necessary to draw the days out. Not my cup of tea.**

 **As always, please leave reviews! I read each and every one of them, and I love seeing those emails pop up. Some of you really had strong opinions about the Riley thing last chapter, and it was interesting to read. So I do greatly appreciate it!**

 **Also, I have another story in the works. I have a few chapters already written, though no real plot drawn out. I just wanna see who would like to see that in tandem with this story, or if you'd prefer I waited until I was further along in this one to start posting a new one, kind of like how I did this story with ATRM. Just wondering.**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	8. Lord, What You're Doing to Me

**Hey! I'm so glad that I was able to get this out before my finals this coming week! I got some very important work done finally, so I had time to get this finished. I hope you guys enjoy! Enjoy this chapter, because it's gonna be a little bit bumpy after this. Love you! Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter Eight**

 **LORD, WHAT YOU'RE DOING TO ME**

 _11:43 am_

It's almost afternoon by the time we reach the Cullen's house. After a brief stop for coffee and then another one about an hour later for a bathroom break, we're finally here.

"Geez, B, you weren't kidding about the house," Alice says, in awe of the structure that's stood in front of her. Rose parked out in front of the front door, on the circular drive.

"I know. I kinda wanna take pictures of it," I admitted as I hauled my bags out of the trunk. I had brought my camera, as always, and I was hoping to get some photos of the neighborhood. Cambridge was more rural compared to Boston, and there was a lot more open space and nature than the cityscape of the area around the college.

"You should, my mom would get a kick out of it," Rose offered, grabbing her own stuff for the weekend stay. "She'd probably stage something inside if you asked."

"I don't really take pictures like that," I argued, wrinkling my nose at the idea of taking pictures like those displayed in home improvement magazines and furniture ads. I preferred more candid shots and tried to avoid setting up too much when I could. I obviously would have to for assignments in the future, but I was hoping that would be the last of those.

Rose shrugged as she locked her car. She led the way into the house, through the front door this time, which happened to open up onto the second level of the home. I had noticed that what I was here with Edward last weekend that the garage was actually a full story lower than the front door. The house was situated into a hill, so part of it was built into the sloping landscape.

"What type of photos do you take?" Edward asked from over my shoulder, slightly startling me. He had hardly spoken the entire drive here, and I hadn't realized he was so close behind me as we were walking inside.

I took in the elegant entryway and the open floor plan of the second story as I answered. "I'm more into candid pieces. Nature, people that are unaware, as little staging as possible. When I do weddings people are always surprised that I don't want to arrange everybody in neat rows. I like to capture people when they're unaware and free. Staging is kinda lame, honestly. You take all the emotion and fluidity out of the photo."

Edward didn't say anything after that, and I wasn't quite sure how to continue any kind of conversation, so I followed Rose and Alice down a hall. Alice seemed to hang back or go to a different part of the house, because I no longer heard his footsteps echoing on the hardwood floor behind me.

"My parent's room, my room, and a guest room are on this floor. Edward's room and another guest room are upstairs. You guys can decide which one you want," Rose explained, opening the door to her bedroom. The space was decently large, with enough space for a queen sized bed, a full chest of drawers, two nightstands, a desk, and a vanity. There were two doors in the room, and one led to what was obviously a closet, and the other appeared to be connected to a bathroom. "This room and the guest room are Jack n' Jill. The third floor only has one bathroom."

"I definitely call this floor," Alice nodded. I had a feeling the uninterrupted access to a full bathroom was her deciding factor, and I wasn't going to argue with her for it. I didn't really care which room I'd be staying in that weekend, it was really just a place to sleep. I could deal with sharing a bathroom with Edward for three days.

"You guys can put you stuff in the room and meet me out back. My mom is usually out there right now. I think my dad said we're grilling for lunch."

I made my way upstairs to where the other guest bedroom was supposed to be. I wasn't sure of the layout of this floor, since Rose had said there were two rooms and a bathroom, but I was positive more than that could fit on the third level. Maybe they had a study or something that their dad used, or maybe there was a gym room or something. Upon stepping onto the landing, Edward's room was easy to point out, since the door was cracked open, and I could see just enough to tell me it was regularly inhabited. The bed was unmade and there was clothes scattered on what part of the floor I could see. I quickly moved past, just in case he was in there, and tried to decipher what the other doors held behind them.

The bathroom door was wide open across the hall from the three other doors that were in this hallway, so I could rule that one out. I opened up the door directly next to Edward's room and peeked my head in, realizing that I was correct about my theory of a study. The walls were lined with shelves that held thousands of books. There was a dark wood desk situated under the window on the far wall and there were filing cabinets the the walls flanking the door. I closed the door and moved onto the next room.

I opened it to reveal the spare bedroom, and I sighed in relief that it had only taken me to this second door to figure out where it was. I hated opening up doors in other people's houses. I felt like I wasn't supposed to look into certain rooms, like it was a violation of privacy or something.

I set my bag on the floor before turning right back around to exit. I went to the bathroom real quick. I'd had a venti coffee from Starbucks on the drive over, and my bladder definitely didn't appreciate it now, almost three hours later. While I was washing my hands, I could hear the faint strain of music over the rush of the water in the sink. I quickly shut it off and listened as I dried my hands on a towel. The music was definitely coming from this floor, and I had a feeling it was coming from Edward's room. When I walked out of the bathroom, though, the music was coming from the opposite end of the hall where the one room I hadn't opened sat. The music would start and then stop abruptly for a moment before picking up again a note or two before where it had ended previously. I knew Edward was a music major, but I had never heard him play or even pick up an instrument. It was a guitar by the sound of things, and I wondered if the last room was his music room. I wanted to go in and discover, but I figured it was better to just leave him be, so I made my way back down the first floor of the house.

I found Rose, Alice, Esme, and who I was assuming was Rose and Edward's father, in the backyard. It was an unseasonably mild day, with the sun shining and no breeze to be felt, so everyone was comfortable in the early afternoon weather. Dr. Cullen was standing at the grill, tending to what looked like hot links carne asada, in a polite conversation with Alice about school, it sounded like. Esme was sitting on the end of the lounge chair Rose was laid across, smiling and listening to a story about something that happened in one of her kinesiology classes. Sliding the glass door closed made a little more noise than I anticipated, and all four of them looked up at me when I did it. I wanted to cringe at disturbing them, but I kept it in check and made it into a soft smile instead.

Esme was up in an instant, grinning and pulling me into a welcoming hug. "Oh, Bella. It's so good to see you again, dear. Come meet my husband." She ushered me over to where Dr. Cullen was by the grill. He shut the top of it and smiled at me, looking so much like his son in that instant.

Esme Cullen had given most of her facial features to her daughter, and her son had gotten her eyes and unique, bronze hair color. Dr. Cullen was definitely the source of Rose's shiny blond hair and crystal blue eyes, but his angular features and striking handsomeness definitely went all to Edward. Even the way his smile was slightly crooked, one side lifting up higher than the other, was all Edward. It was crazy looking at the man and realizing Edward was just going to get more handsome with age. I sent a prayer up for all the women to ever have the misfortune of crossing paths with him. God help them all.

"Ah, Bella, it's so good to meet you, finally. Esme raved about you all week. She's excited that Rose finally has female friends," he said, that Edward smirk pulling at his lips and making my ovaries do a little shimmy. The men in this family were too damn attractive.

"It's good to meet you, too, Dr. Cullen," I greeted, offering him a small smile.

"Please, call me Carlisle," he insisted, winking at me and nearly making my knees buckle. Jesus Christ. He was almost as bad as his son.

I nodded to let him know that I would try to from now on, but I wasn't making any promises. It always felt weird to me to call other people's parents by their first names. I called Alice's mom by her name, but that was because I had known her since I was essentially a toddler. I had earned that right. With new people, it was always strange.

"So, Rose tells me you're a journalism major with a minor in photography," he stated, opening the top of the grill again. "Have you done photography for long?"

"Since middle school," I said. "My mom was always changing hobbies. Photography was one of them at one point. She moved onto something else by the next month, but I stuck with it."

"What are some things that you've done?"

I told him about working for the high school yearbook and doing local weddings and photoshoots for newborns and things like that. I mentioned taking all my photos while we were on our road trip and getting the job at the shop taking shots for the artists' portfolios and artwork around the shop. I also told him about getting the job to do the wedding for a relative of one of my friends. I was just in a beginner photography class for now, and we had a few assignments that I was working on, but they were nothing really brag-worthy. It was small little assignments that encouraged us to learn different techniques and how to work with what we had, which were things that I already knew, but I had to take this class in order to get my minor requirements, and there wasn't really a way to test out of photography classes.

"It's sounds like you're pretty passionate about photography," he acknowledged, smiling at me. "Why aren't you majoring in that, then? Why the journalism?"

I shrugged. "I like writing, too. And I can't really do anything just having a degree in photography. Journalism was practical, and it's an in to publications. Ideally, I'd like to report on a subject and take photos for my own assignments."

"I don't see why you won't be able to just make a career out of photography if you're good at it, and it sounds like you are."

"She's fantastic." Edward's voice startled me. I glanced over my shoulder to see him walking toward where his dad and I were standing. I hadn't heard him come out here. There was a brief moment where our eyes met, and his green eyes reflected the midday sun, making them even more bright than normal. His tongue peeked out to lick his lips, and that little ball in his tongue made a brief appearance.

I cleared my throat and looked away from him. "Thank you. I think I'm pretty decent, but being just a photographer isn't practical in this society. The starving artist thing isn't appealing to me. Otherwise, I wouldn't have bothered with college."

"You sound like Edward," Carlisle chuckled, slapping a hand onto his son's shoulder.

"Not many film studios look at you if you don't have a degree," Edward said seriously.

"You want to compose?" I asked, surprised. I didn't realize that he was that good at music. I knew he played instruments, and I had heard firsthand that he played the guitar, but I couldn't see how that translated to being a film composer. There was probably a good chance that he played other instruments that I didn't know about. When I really thought about it, I really didn't know a whole lot about Edward.

Edward just nodded and offered me a small smile. I reciprocated.

"Alright, lunch is ready," Carlisle announced.

We all gathered around the picnic table outside and had a nice lunch, listening to the Cullens talk about their lives and interact with each other. It was strange to compare Rose and Edward's dynamic around their parents as opposed to when they were just surrounded by friends. Rose and Edward weren't overly affectionate to each other when they were just in the apartment. They usually ragged on each other mercilessly and seemed to live to piss each other off, though there was obviously love behind their bickering. When they were here at their home, though, they leaned into each other as they laughed, and Edward swung his arm around his sister's shoulders when he wasn't eating. He acted like the typical protective big brother when Emmett came up in conversation, making some comment about making sure he never stepped out of line, which made Rose roll her eyes and their parents chuckle good-naturedly.

It was easy to forget sometimes that Rose and Edward were actually siblings when we were at school. They acted friendly, and they obviously knew each other, but there was no outward displays of affection that I thought was normal between siblings. I obviously never had one, but I had plenty of friends in high school that did, and they had bugged each other, but it usually ended with a quick hug and maybe a kiss to the head. Rose and Edward weren't like that at school, but here, in their backyard, they were like a fucking Norman Rockwell painting, with their wide smiles, teasing banter, and warmth towards each other. It was almost surreal. I had to blink a few times to make sure that I wasn't seeing things.

Eventually, Rose mentioned to her parents that I wanted to take pictures of the house, and Esme all but jumped out of her seat. She beamed and told me she'd love if I took a walk around and took photos of whatever I wanted. She said I was also allowed onto the golf course that connected to their backyard, as they were members of the country club and not many people golfed on Friday evenings around here. I thanked her and helped them clean up the small mess we had made around the yard.

All of us were pretty tired from the drive over here, so Esme suggested we take naps and then we could wander around at about four to take photos. She said that the sun set right through the big open windows that faced the backyard, and it was beautiful. I agreed, and Rose and Alice said that a walk would be nice before dinner. So, we all planned to take our naps and then reconvene around four in order to head out for an hour or so.

I parted from Rose and Alice on the second floor and proceeded up to the third. Edward had headed up a few minutes before we had, so I knew he was probably in his room, already getting ready to settle in. His bedroom door was wide open when I got to the landing, though, and the bathroom was in the same state. I figured he might have stayed in the kitchen or to go work on his car or something.

I kicked off my shoes as I closed the guest room door. The bed was a comfy looking queen with light grey bedding and about a hundred pillows, which was just as well, because I liked to cocoon myself in blankets and pillows when I slept. I slipped out of my jeans and pulled on a pair of sweats and then pulled back the covers on the bed. As soon as I settled into the bed, I could feel myself already being pulled under.

I was on the verge of sleep when I heard a guitar start up in the room down the hall. Edward must have already been in there when I came up, because I hadn't heard him walk down the hall recently. I listened as a few of what sounded like pretty random notes were played before an actual rhythm started up. The notes were familiar, and I knew that I knew the song that was being played, but I couldn't quite place it. It wasn't until the chorus that I realized it was Every Breath You Take by The Police. Satisfied that I had finally pinpointed it, I let my eyes close and drifted to sleep to the sounds of Edward's music.

}ACH{

 _4:53 pm_

"Jesus, how can you make something I've seen for the last five years of my life look so extraordinary?" Rose wondered aloud as I scrolled through all the pictures we had just taken on my computer.

Rose had showed me around to some spots around the neighborhood and the golf course that she thought were pretty, and we spent awhile going to those. When the sun had first begun to set, we came back to the house and I took pictures through the family room on the second floor. The sun hit the line of trees on the horizon perfectly and just lit up the entire space in some sort of ethereal glow. It looked great on the camera at a couple different exposure times.

I shrugged. "Usually, when you see something day in and day out for years, you stop noticing its beauty and details. Photos are like seeing these things from someone else's eyes."

"So this is what you see in the world constantly?" Rose asked, still gazing at the pictures of her home. "Like, you see this sort of potential in ordinary things."

I nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. I see the place or object and I can usually decide within a few seconds what type of effect would look best with it or best compliment it. Being behind a camera for so long, you just kinda see the world how you would see it through the lens."

"That's amazing, Bella, really. I wish I had some sort of artistic sense," Rose huffed out a laugh. "Edward got all the artistic genes in this family. Music, drawing, tattooing."

"Medicine is an art, Rose. Just because it's not a pen to paper, fingers to instrument, eye to camera type of art, doesn't mean it's not its own form of art."

I could feel her eye roll from behind me. "Sure, B. Whatever you say." She chuckled and I felt her back away from the position I held on the couch. "I'm gonna go see what Alice is up to. You good out here?"

I nodded and shot her a thumbs up. Esme had said dinner would be ready in about half an hour, anyway. I could entertain myself for at least that long, I figured, especially since I was in the middle of editing some photos to fix some clarity and focusing issues. Luckily it was nothing too major, so I was able to breeze through some of them with just a slight enhancement.

"Hey," Edward's voice came from behind me. I turned to look over the back of the couch at him and had to bite my tongue as I took in his presence.

The setting sun was still shining through the large windows, and the light was casting a warm glow on his skin. The colors in some of the tattoos on his arms seemed more vibrant than usual. The red hues in his hair were blazing, and his eyes were sparkling like I had never seen. I wanted to take a photo of him, but I was sure that was a little weird, even by crazy, artsy people standards.

"Hey," I greeted. I moved my camera from beside me to the coffee table so he'd have a space to sit, if he wanted to. There was another chair right next to me, but it had a fairly large decorative pillow in it that looked like it rarely got moved.

Edward sat in the seat that I had cleared for him and looked down at the photos I was scrolling through on the computer.

"Are there any more on this memory card?" he asked.

"Yeah, this was the same one I used during our trip. All the places we saw are on here."

"Can I see them?" he wondered. I nodded and opened up the folder labeled with the dates of mine and Alice's trip and opened them up. Pictures from all across the country popped up, and I started at the first one. I handed Edward my computer so that he could scroll through them as he pleased.

I watched as he scrolled through all of the pictures of Alice and me, starting at the one my dad took when we took off that first morning. He took a few seconds on every photo, paying extra attention to the ones taken in places like Chicago and New York. I had gotten some pretty good photos at those places of statues and famous buildings, and I was even able to get the New York skyline at sunset, which was absolutely beautiful. When he got to it, he took a few extra moments to really look at it.

"That one's my favorite," I admitted. "We were only there for that one night, and I was able to get a really kickass photo of the skyline. I was so excited when I saw that it came out really well."

Edward's mouth pulled up into a small smile as he looked up at me. "It's really good, JB. All of these are fantastic," he said, turning back and continuing to scroll through the photos. When he gave me a genuine smile like he just had, my stomach erupted into a million little butterflies, and I couldn't help the blush that I knew had risen to my face.

At some points throughout the trip, I had let Alice have my camera when she demanded she needed to take photos of me on this adventure, too. I had taken plenty of Alice at different places, usually walking through the streets a few yards ahead of me. Alice always dressed so well, and she always looked great in photos, so there was no reason to not take a million pictures of her. I, on the other hand, preferred to stay behind the camera. I wasn't particularly fond of having my picture taken, but she had coaxed the camera from my hands a few times, and was able to catch a few of me along our trip.

Edward happened upon one that I hadn't even really noticed before. We were in New York and in the middle of Times Square, the lights all on and a thousand people around us. I distinctly remembered Alice having called my name to get my attention, and she snapped a picture as I turned around. My face was lit up in a huge, carefree smile, and the lights from all the buildings and screens illuminated my face, accentuating my cheekbones and giving a sheen to my eyes that made them twinkle. It was odd to see myself looking so good in such a spur of the moment photo, but I suddenly loved Alice for taking it. I had half a mind to upload it to my social media platforms to make it my profile picture.

"Do you ever wanna go back?" Edward asked.

"I'd like to. Maybe over spring break or something," I said. "Make a week trip out of it."

"My family used to go every summer for two weeks. My mom liked to catch a play, and Rose and I would mess around in the toy store for hours. Central Park is really, nice too."

"I'd never been anywhere besides Arizona and Washington before this road trip."

"Arizona?"

"My mom moved there when I was about five. I lived permanently with my dad, but I'd visit her every other Christmas and every summer for a few weeks. I lived with her for three months when she first got remarried when I was twelve, but I couldn't stand all the heat."

Edward smirked at me, but it wasn't sarcastic or teasing. "What, you don't like one hundred and ten degree weather all year round?"

I chuckled. "Only the most masochistic would willingly put themselves through that."

Alice came bouncing into the living room then, as excitable and bubbly as always. "Esme said dinner is ready, you two. Edward, she wants you to get drinks from the garage."

"Ok, be right up, Al," I let her know, taking my laptop back from Edward's lap. I shut everything down as Alice went back upstairs and Edward rose from the couch. He walked up the stairs ahead of me, and he looked over his shoulder to offer me a small smile.

I was actually enjoying this 'being friend with Edward' thing more than I thought I would. I was almost positive that being civil toward one another wouldn't last more than a few days, but I was pleasantly surprised by the ease with which we interacted with each other. Maybe there was hope for a friendship, yet.

}ACH{

 _11:42 pm_

After a delicious dinner of lasagna, garlic bread, and caesar salad, we all settled into the living room to watch a movie together. Edward and I sat amicably next to each other, and we even shared a bowl of popcorn without getting in each other's way. Once the movie was over, Rose, Alice, and I talked for awhile in Rose's room until we all decided it was time to turn in for the night. We had had a long day, and we were all pretty tired, despite our coffee and naps earlier.

I quickly washed my face and brushed my teeth in the bathroom before heading in and getting changed into pajamas. Edward's door was closed and his light was on, so I knew he was in his room, doing something or another. I changed and put my phone on the charger before getting comfy in the bed. I scrolled through Facebook and checked stories on Snapchat for awhile before I felt my eyes getting heavy, so I let myself succumb to sleep.

What felt like only a few minutes later, I was being gently shaken awake at my shoulder. I opened my eyes wearily, but the room was still pitch black. I blinked a few times to adjust my eyes, and I finally saw Edward's face about a foot away from mine.

"What the fuck?" I grumbled out. I didn't know what time it was, but I wanted to be back asleep. "Edward? What are you doing here? What time is it?"

"You sure ask a lot of questions," he said, his voice obviously teasing. "It's half past midnight. And I wanna show you something. Get up and get dressed in something warm."

Well, at least it wasn't an obscene hour, but I was still tired. The bed was so cozy and warm, and there had better be a damn good reason Edward was waking me up.

"What are we doing?"

"You'll see. Just get dressed. Meet me at the door to the backyard. And bring your camera." He didn't give me any other directions or say anything else to me before he was leaving and closing the bedroom door behind him.

I took a minutes to process that Edward had just told me to get dressed. Obviously, he had an adventure in mind, but his request was a little strange. I didn't think we were on that level yet where we could suggest midnight outings together and both of us would be comfortable. I trusted Edward, on some level, but I was also wary about what was going on. But, wariness aside, I got out of bed, reluctantly, and ambled over to my bag in search of appropriate clothing.

I found a long sleeved thermal, a plaid button up, and my army green, canvas jacket easily enough. I pulled on the same jeans I had been wearing earlier and then slipped some boots on over my fuzzy socks, because I knew it got cold out there at night, now that fall was in full swing. I found a beanie and gloves that I had had the mind to pack, too, and shoved those in my pockets. I grabbed my camera and a freshly emptied memory card and headed out the door.

Edward was standing by the back door, messenger bag slung over his shoulder, dressed much the same that I was. He looked good, but he was speaking before I had much of a chance to ogle him.

"There's something I want to show you," he told me. He slid the back door open and ushered me out. The night air was pretty chilly, and there was a slight wind that had picked up since the beginning of the day. I was glad that I had had the foresight to bring a beanie and gloves on this little adventure of sorts. I still wasn't aware of where we were going or what we were doing, but I knew he wanted me to photograph something.

We traversed across the golf course for the length of it, until the lush green of the course turned into a dense treeline. Apparently, this was the end of the course, because there were no other holes beyond the treeline, and the trees just got denser and denser. I wasn't exactly the most coordinated person to begin with, but it was even worse in the dark. I kept tripping over tree roots and rocks and who know what else was on the floor. I heard Edward sigh and his hand was around my wrist, helping to keep my steady as I walked on. It helped, but I was also hyper-aware of his hold on me, that it was almost just as bad as when I was walking on my own. I pulled it together enough to stay upright until the trees finally broke, and we were standing in a clearing.

Edward's hand dropped my arm as I stepped forward and looked at the place that he had led me. The trees had broken, and in front of me was a pretty, lush, meadow. The flowers were surprisingly in bloom, and I could easily see their multitude of colors under the bright glow of the full moon. There was a trickling stream about a hundred yards beyond where we were standing, and I could see the moon's reflection all the way from here.

"Oh, wow," I breathed. "This is beautiful. What is this place?"

"I don't really know. I found it when I was in high school. I came out here to draw, a lot. I thought you'd like to take some photos."

So that's what I did. Edward and I stayed outside in the cold, him on an old tree trunk, a sketchbook propped up in his lap as he drew, and me wandering around and taking pictures of anything and everything that struck my fancy. I probably took about seventy-five to a hundred photos by the time I was too frozen to take anymore. My fingers were like little popsicles, despite having gloves on the entire time. I didn't know how Edward was doing it with no gloves on and his hand flying across the paper.

He noticed when I put the lens cap back on my camera, though, and looked up at me. The pale moonlight hit all the highpoints of his face, and much like earlier in the day, I was struck by how truly handsome he was. I knew I was attracted to all the tattoos over his body, but I was still incredibly drawn to him, even as he was completely covered, with just his face and hands exposed. He was, by far, the most attractive man I had ever seen, and it was a fact that I didn't forget often.

Edward stayed seated, still just looking at me, so I walked over to him, shoving my hands in my pockets to try to worm them up. They were seriously freezing. I needed to get inside and run them under some warm water or something.

As soon as I was close enough to maybe see what Edward had been drawing, he closed the cover of his sketchbook, a somewhat wary look glazing his eyes.

"I'm ready to head back if you are. My fingers are about to fall off," I told him. He just kind of smirked at me. "Like, seriously. I'm concerned about frostbite at this point."

He finally put his book and pencils back into his bag and stood up. He held his hand out to me, and I wasn't exactly sure what he wanted, so I just raised an eyebrow at him. He shook his hand a little in insistence.

"Give me your hands," was all he said. I kept my brow raised but did as he said and offered him both my hands. He gathered them in both of his surprisingly warm, much larger one, and the started rubbing vigorously.

"How are your hands still so warm? It's below forty out here." I was talking to prevent myself from getting too wrapped up in the sensation of his skin on mine. There was this weird electric current running between us that was making my hands tingly and my heart stutter. "And you don't even have any gloves on."

"I'm a guy. Testosterone makes us perpetually warm." The tone of his voice made it obvious that he was trying to joke about it, but his eyes on mine were too intense. I was trying to look away, but his eyes were essentially asking me to keep them locked on his.

"Well, isn't that good for you," I said, but it barely came out as a whisper. Edward dropped our hands between us but kept mine warmly enclosed in his. I'm not sure when we started breathing so heavily, but our breath was puffing in the air between us, creating a constant haze of fog around our heads.

"It's a perk." We've somehow stepped closer to each other, and there's barely a half a foot of space between us. I could feel the heat radiating off his body through both our clothing. The air was heavy between us, but with what, I have no idea.

It's silent between us for a few moments, neither of us making a move to go or shifting our eyes from each other. Edward's flick down to my mouth as his tongue darts out to lick his lips. The little stud in his tongue makes its appearance and nearly makes my knees buckle. It's amazing the effect that one small piece of jewelry can have on my body. And it's not even coming into contact with any part of me. I couldn't imagine what it would be like if it ever did.

I can hear myself swallow in the quiet, the only other sound coming from our breathing and the trickling water in the stream. Edward took another step closer, closing the distance so my chest brushed against his with every breath.

"Bella…" he breathed, and I could feel his breath against my face. It smelled of mint and a hint of cigarette smoke, and it was incredibly comforting in that moment.

"Yeah?" But I don't think he was really looking for a response after he said my name. I felt him take a deep breath one moment, and in the next his lips were brushing against mine, soft and almost hesitant with how light the pressure was. His breath puffed out in a rush against my lips and I breathed out my own shaky huff.

"Can I?" he whispered against my lips. I barely begun my nod by the time that he had his lips more firmly pressed against mine.

His lips were warm, just like how his hands were, and so incredibly soft. No guy I had ever kissed before had such smooth skin. Edward just barely moved our lips for a few moments, but it was the most intense kiss I had ever had. That tingling feeling that I had whenever our skin touched was coursing through my lips. When he gently pulled my bottom lip between both of his, the feeling intensified, and it was all I could do not to whimper out loud.

I didn't know what any of this meant, and I had every intention of figuring it out. But, for the moment, I was planning on just enjoying it. I could decode Edward's kiss tomorrow.

* * *

 **So, yeah. That happened. Don't get used to it haha. So, I'm hoping the next chapter will be up before Christmas, but if it's not, then I hope you guys have an awesome Christmas, if you celebrate.**

 **Please please please leave me comments. I read each and every single one of them and I appreciate them all. I know I haven't responded to any in a while, but I've been so freaking busy, I barely have time to breathe. So, forgive me. I'll try to get back on top of that.**

 **ALSO! I am in the process of writing a new story. Let me know if you want to see it posted in tandem with this, or if you'd like me to wait a while and post it when this story is getting toward the end, like I did with ATRM and this story. Let me know!**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	9. Highway to Hell

**Hey guys! I'm so glad to be getting this out before Christmas. I promise to try my hardest to get at least one more out before the end of my winter break, at the beginning of January. And since I know I most likely, unless by some miracle, be seeing you before Christmas, Merry Christmas, to those who celebrate. I'm not sure when Hanukkah is this year, but Happy Hanukkah, as well :) And Happy Holidays, to cover the New Year, too.**

 **Okay, on with the show!**

* * *

 **Highway to Hell**

 **Chapter 9**

 _October 19th, 2015_

 _2:29 pm_

"Hey, Bells," Jake calls as I step in through the back door of the shop. I offer him a smile as I drop my bag off by the front desk.

"Hey Jake, how's it going? How was your weekend?" I ask. I force more pep in my voice than I am really feeling, but I have to, otherwise Jake will ask me what's wrong, and I am not willing to delve into that anytime soon.

"Eh. Lots of studying. Midterms, ya know?" He smirks at me over his shoulder. He's working on a sketch for a client that is due in a few hours.

"Yeah, I get it. Luckily, I only had math and English. My other teachers took pity on me." It's not like I could take a midterm for a photography class or a physical fitness class, anyway.

"Must be nice…" he says, sighing in fake exasperation. He grins before turning back around to his work and burying his nose to the paper.

I drop down into the chair at the front desk and begin going through the notes that are left around the desk. When the shop is busy and I wasn't there, anyone who answers the phone usually left me a little note saying who called and why, and I typically end up calling them back to get an appointment scheduled or something. I get to work on that, and watch Edward as he leans against the window outside, puffing on a cigarette. He's looking out onto the street, seemingly staring at nothing as he takes lazy drags and lets the smoke out slowly.

We haven't really spoken since he kissed me a little over a week ago. He hasn't completely shut me out or anything, but we haven't been as friendly as we were before. I'm not quite sure what I expected after that night, but I didn't really think this would be it. After we parted, he apologized and I told him it didn't require an apology. He quickly gathered his things and then we made the trek back to the house. We walked up the stairs together and we parted ways in the hall. He called out a soft goodnight over his shoulder and then closed his door. The rest of the weekend passed in little glances and polite conversation whenever we ended up being alone together. Neither of us mentioned anything about what happened, and he hasn't really spoken to me since we've gotten back to Boston.

When he comes back in the shop, I'm on the phone with a customer, trying to work out a day for him to come in and see Emmett, who has done several of his other tattoos. Emmett is usually the first one booked, though, so there's a little bit of difficulty fitting anyone in on short notice. Edward comes back into the shop while I'm talking to the customer, and he offers me one of those very blasé guy nods, so I just raise my hand in a half-assed wave. That's it. That's all the interaction we have for the rest of the week.

Saturday morning, Alice and I meet up with Rose for breakfast and to make plans for the weekend. We also have a discussion about the party that Rose and Edward are throwing for Halloween at their parents' house the following weekend. Alice immediately starts scrambling for costume ideas in her head while Rose and I talk about tonight's plans.

"Em wants to get drunk and hang out and play games and shit. There's some parties going on around, but I don't really wanna go out," Rose says, sipping on her coffee,

"I could go for drunk party games," I agree. I'm always down for party games when I get a little plastered. It makes for very interesting stories over the next few years.

"Great," Rose smiles. "Eddie's going to be there."

Her statement seems strange. "He lives there, Rose. I didn't really expect anything different."

She shrugs. "I just thought I'd let you know since you guys are acting all weird again. I know you guys were starting to get along for about a week there, and then it just got strained again, all of a sudden."

Shit. She had noticed. I was hoping everyone would just brush it off. Edward and I had only been acting friendly for about a week before he kissed me, so I was hoping that no one could tell that anything was different. Evidently, it wasn't as simple as that.

It's my turn to shrug. "I mean, we were civil, and we still are. He must have just decided to stop trying to be friends."

Rose and Alice, who has suddenly rejoined the conversation, both give me withering looks. "What?" I ask defensively.

"You two don't want to be friends with each other," Rose states, and I'm kind of shocked. Have I really been that big of a bitch to him? Has he been that much of a dick to me?

"Of course I want to be Edward's friend, Rose. It would make everything so much easier if we were friends. This shuffling around each other thing gets really old, really fast."

"Rose means you guys don't want to be friends because you'd much rather be more than friends," Alice jumps in, and now I'm doing everything I can to keep the heat from rising to my face.

I don't know if I'm really that obvious or if they're just making wild assumptions. I want Edward. I've wanted Edward from the first time that I laid eyes on him. And I know that I like Edward as a person, even though I don't know him all that well. But the parts that I do know I like. I like that he's passionate about his work, both the art and the music. I like that he is genuinely interested in my photos. I secretly like that he teases me about the jailbait thing, even though that ship has sailed. It's annoying, yet somehow endearing.

Edward is also the bane of my existence at any given moment. He's so hot and cold all the time with his moods and how he behaves around me. I just wanted to know how he actually felt about me. Was he actually into me, as his kiss would suggest, or did he still view me as jailbait. He and Emmett both still called me JB, so was that confirmation that Edward will never see me as anything more than some kid that his little sister hangs out with? These circles we were walking around each other were infuriating, and I was getting to my breaking point.

But no one could know all that.

So, instead, I tell Rose and Alice, "I'm not into Edward like that. How could I be into someone who basically ignores my existence?" The truthfulness in that second sentence was much too honest, and it caused a twinge in my gut that was pretty unpleasant. Why was I into the guy that seemed to try his hardest to ignore me?

They both just stare at me, eyebrows raised. I huff.

"That's the biggest load of shit I've heard in a long time," Rose mutters, rolling her eyes at me over the rim of her mug. Alice nods along to Rose's assessment.

"I don't like Edward like that," I nearly shout in my earnestness to convince them. I'm hoping it's working. "I don't know him enough to like him. He hardly even looks at me."

Rose chokes on her coffee. At first I think she's genuinely choking, but then she's laughing and dabbing at her mouth with a napkin. I glare.

"Oh, Bella, now _that's_ the biggest load of shit I've heard. That boy cannot take his eyes off of you when you're in the same room. I mean, I don't think he realizes he's doing it, but it's definitely happening."

I shake my head. "That's shit, Rose. Whenever we're in a room together, his nose is buried in his phone or in his drawings, and his headphones are in constantly."

Both Alice and Rose seem to become more exasperated with each word that comes out of my mouth, so I raise my hands as both of them prepare to speak at the same time.

"Alright, enough. I'm done with this conversation. Can we talk about what we're drinking tonight?"

Thankfully, that distracts them for the rest of the morning.

}ACH{

 _9:32 pm_

It's not even ten o' clock, and I'm drunk.

I swear, I was still good about fifteen minutes ago. Emmett had been steadily refilling my cup with whatever delicious mixed drink he threw together. I had seen him make it the first time, and he had barely put any rum into it, but I'm thinking he was adding more and more with every cup that he made, because it is hitting me hard all of a sudden. My tongue feels funny, which is the first sign that I'm well on my way to having a good time.

The good time tonight, though, consists of a drunken game of Life. Rose keeps yelling at Emmett every time she hits a Payday square, and Alice squeals each time she lands on a space and adds another child to her little car. I'm mostly struggling to count money, since I was somehow nominated to be the banker in this game. It takes me a solid three or four minutes to count out the seventy thousand dollars Em needs after his most recent turn, even though it's only like three slips of paper. I'm making it so much harder on myself by counting out all ten thousand dollar bills first, and then realizing that I can do it a different way.

Edward steps out after our first game of Life to go smoke down by the pool, which both Rose and Em say is his thinking spot. He's been drinking, but I'm not entirely sure if he's even buzzed, because his countenance has not changed at all throughout the three hours that we've been drinking. But, then again, I am pretty tipsy. Who am I to really be picking up on small gestures and signals?

As soon as Edward's steps stop echoing off the stairs as he descends them, Rose turns to me, her slightly glazed eyes trained on mine. I'm slightly scared, because despite our friendship, I know that Rose can be one scary bitch, and I never want to have her wrath aimed at me.

"Bella. Now that your lips are nice and loosened up, tell me. Do you like my brother?"

I start giggling at the image that pops into my head when she says that my lips are loosened up. That fish with the giant lips from that episode of Spongebob when he goes to Karate Island is dancing around in my head.

Alice's little snaps a few inches in front of my face clear it away. "Bella, stay with me girl. Answer Rose."

"Why do you need to know so bad? What does it even matter?"

Rose shoots Em a look that seems to say, 'Do you see what I have to deal with?' Em holds his hands up in front of him in a gesture of staying out of whatever is happening. Good for him.

"Just answer the question, B. It's just a simple yes or no," Alice insists.

I mean, she does have a point. What does it matter if people know that I'm definitely into Edward Cullen? Isn't every girl into Edward? And even if I am into Edward, it doesn't mean anything. I'm definitely not going to be acting on it any time soon, especially since his little cold shoulder move after he kissed me. That bastard.

"He kissed me that first night we spent at your house," I find myself blurting. There's that feeling just a split second after the words leave my lips where my sober brain is kicking me in the ass for saying this, but my drunk brain is too far gone to really care.

Emmett groans and buries his head in his hands, mumbling something that I can't hear. Rose's eyes have widened in shock, her mouth hanging open just the tiniest bit. Alice is trying to reign in her squeals of excitement.

"What the fuck, B? And you're not telling us until now?" Rose demands, her voice a little too loud for my liking.

So, I tell them about how everything went down that night. When I get to the part of him coming into my room and waking me, Alice gets a little smirk on her face that I choose to ignore. When I tell them about how he grabbed my hands to warm them, Em rolls his eyes and shakes his head, muttering something about Edward being to smooth for his own good. And when I finally get to the part about the kiss and then him promptly ignoring me, Rose looks like she's going to go all Hades from Disney's Hercules on us. I think I even see a little bit of steam rising from the top of her head. Or maybe I'm just that drunk. Who knows?

Before Rose actually has a chance to blow her lid over whatever has got her so bent out of shape, Edward walks back in, his hood up over his head. When he closes the door and walks into the living room, all of our eyes are trained on him. The rest of us are just kind of looking at him, but his sister is shooting daggers with her eyes, and Edward definitely notices.

"What?" he asks. It's the first time I've heard him speak in over a week, and my drunk self essentially swoons at the sounds. Alice must notice the way my eyes have trained on him, and I can only barely feel my bottom lip between my teeth, so she gives me a slight nudge with her elbow to snap me out of it.

"Nothing, man," Emmett quickly jumps in, since he's the only one that isn't plastered. "You know how Rose gets when she's drunk."

Edward rolls his eyes. "Mad at me for no apparent reason? Yeah, sounds about right."

He disappears down the hallway and doesn't emerge for the rest of the night.

Around one in the morning, we all decide to call it a night. There's no way Alice and I are walking all the way back to our dorm, so Alice crashes on the futon in their office/music room, and I take the couch. I'm out before Rose and Emmett even close the door to their bedroom.

}ACH{

 _October 31st, 2015_

 _3:22 pm_

We've just made it to the Cullen's home. Their parents have decided to go on a little get away this weekend, so they've been gone since yesterday afternoon. Rose has assured me that they know her and her brother are throwing this Halloween party and are okay with it, as long as the house is clean by the time they get back Sunday evening.

I'm helping Rose put away anything that's fragile so no one breaks anything during their drunken shenanigans tonight. I don't know who all is coming, but I invited Riley and Bree in an attempt to try to get them to spend some time together. When I saw Riley again earlier in the week, he still hadn't spoken to her beside a generic greeting when he saw her on campus. I nearly facepalmed in the diner due to how hopeless he has become. He was one smooth motherfucker in high school, so I have no idea what happened to him.

"Has Alice told you what your costume is?" Rose asks as we store some of her mom's expensive vases in a cabinet in the laundry room.

"No, she's keeping it a secret until I get dressed." Like every Halloween, Alice picks out our costumes and I just kind of go along with it. She always picks out something I'm actually willing to wear, so I don't really stress out about it beforehand. "Has she told you what she has for me?"

She shakes her head with a shoulder shrug. "Nope, I'm just as in the dark as you are. Every time I've asked she just smirks and giggles."

"Oh no," I mutter. Nothing good ever comes from a smirking Alice. "The only instruction I have is to get showered at four and be in her room once I'm out."

"Well, I guess we'll see in a few hours," Rose chuckles.

An hour and a half later, I'm sitting in the guest room Alice stays in, on the bed while she puts my hair up in curlers. My hair is already pretty wavy on its own, so I'm not sure what all this is for. They're not big glamorous curlers, either. They're pretty small, meaning these curls are going to be pretty tight.

Alice's hair is unusually sleek and shiny. She put in faux bangs as soon as she was done setting all my curlers, but I have no idea who she's trying to emulate. It's not until she comes out in a white button down shirt, cropped black slacks, and black flats do I understand what she is. I smile at her and shake my head.

"This is why you've been growing your hair out?" I chuckle. Alice usually keeps her hair in a kind of long pixie-ish cut, but she hasn't cut it since the middle of the summer. I was wondering if she was really just going to let it grow out, but it appears the bob-length cut was purposeful.

"It's getting cut on Monday," she laughs. "I just wanted to let it grow a little bit for this so I didn't have to get a wig."

I nod. "Very nice. Do I get to know what costume you came up with for me, yet?" I'm anxious. Judging from Alice's costume, I'm guessing it's going to be inspired by some 90's entertainment. I'm just hoping she's not going With Britney or anything. Although, she would have thrown a blond wig on me instead of putting my hair in curlers.

"You'll find out in about a half an hour. Be patient," she playfully chastises.

She goes to work on my makeup as my hair is still up in the curlers. She does my eyes a little smokey using smudged out liner and a bit of grey shadow. It's more of a messy look, but she adds a slight wing with liquid liner over it. She puts bright red lipstick on my mouth before working to remove the curlers. My hair is a riotous mess once they're all down, but she finger combs it and flips a majority of it to one side. I'm definitely feeling the 90s vibe when I look into the mirror.

"Your costume is hanging up in the bathroom. Oh, and you'll need these," she says, handing me a plastic pack of little pieces that look like flower petals. It takes me a second to realize what they are.

"Al, why do I need pasties?" I ask, hoping she's not going to say what I think she is.

"Because you can't wear a bra with you costume. The top is white." She says it like it's a no-brainer.

"But-" I start to protest, but she cuts me off.

"Bella, your boobs are so perky that it's a little ridiculous. You can do this, I promise."

I huff and take the pasties from her hands before marching into the bathroom, when I close the door, I notice the costume that's hanging on the back of it. Now that I'm seeing it, I realize I should have guessed a long time ago, but it hadn't really crossed my mind. It's been years since I've seen Pretty Woman, and I honestly totally forgot how iconic it was at the time.

I'm actually really impressed with how good the costume is, so I quickly strip down and awkwardly apply the nipple covers. I slip the costume over my head like a dress and situate it until it's to my liking. Like usual, Alice is right about not being able to wear a bra with this, since we all know full well Julia Roberts wasn't in the move. It's sheer, but the pasties help to conceal the fact that I'm not wearing a bra. The blue skirt is short, but not any shorter than the skirts I already own, so I'm not upset about that. I am a little afraid of the black, thigh high boots that I see propped up by the sink. I sit on the edge of the tub as I tug them on and zip them up in the back. A look in the mirror shocks me, since the outfit is pretty much an exact replica of the one from the movie. I have to say, Alice did a pretty bang up job with the costume choices.

When I emerge, Alice squeals and claps as she bounces up and down in her toes. "Oh, B! You look perfect. I knew that would look so good on you!"

"I actually do really like it, Al," I admit. She's never led me wrong with Halloween costumes before, so I don't know why I was freaking out over this one. "Is 90s the theme tonight?"

"Yes! You should go see everyone else's costumes. They should all be dressed by now."

A glance at the clock tells me it's already past six in the evening. It's still kind of early for a party and for everyone else to get here, but I know Rose, Em, and Edward are probably dressed and getting things set up. Edward and Em went on a booze run earlier, so I'm sure they're back by now. I wonder if Alice roped Jasper into dressing with the theme tonight, as well.

Making my way to the kitchen, where the other three are setting out cups and putting together a very large vat of jungle juice, I can't help but chickle when I see everyone's costumes.

Rose is looking very preppy and unlike herself in a yellow plaid skirt and jacket combo, with a white shirt and yellow cardigan. The outfit is complete with the knee-high white socks and high heel Mary Janes.

Emmett is dressed in an oatmeal colored cable knit sweater, acid wash jeans, and the tips of his naturally dark, curly hair, are dyed bleach blonde. He even has those God awful purple tinted glasses that were very popular in the nineties perched on his nose. Each ear has a hoop through the lobe, and I hope to God that Alice didn't actually convince him to pierce his ears.

My gaze drifts over to Edward last, and I want to throttle Alice. She knows Brad Pitt in Fight Club is my ultimate weakness, and she knew to play on that tonight. He's dressed in dark jeans, a button up shirt with the last couple button undone, exposing the little sliver of skin near the waistband of his jeans and the little happy trail that resides there. He has a red leather jacket on over it, and there's makeup on his face to make him look bruised and bloodied. His hair is styled into messy spikes, and there's a pair of sunglasses hanging at his neckline.

No one has looked up at me yet, probably not having heard my entrance.

"Do you need help with anything?" I ask, making all three pairs of eyes flash up to me. Rose's widen before a wicked smile crosses her face. Emmett wolf-whistles at me and throws in a wink. Edward stands there, staring at me but not saying a word or making any expression that indicates what he's thinking.

"Jesus Christ, JB. Is Alice trying to get you laid?" Em jokes, chuckling at his own assessment. I just roll my eyes. "Seriously, you're like every guy's first wet dream."

Edward chokes on the sip of jungle juice he just took. "Jesus, Em. Really?" He wipes at his mouth with the back of his hand and glares at Emmett.

Em shrugs. "I calls it as I see it."

Rosalie just chuckles and shakes her head. "You look really kickass, B."

"Thanks. You all look really good, too. Al went all out with the 90s thing. I can't believe you let her dye your ends blond, Em," I say, chuckling.

He grins at me. "I'm down to do whatever to be JT. The guy's a legend. He banged Britney Spears. I mean, c'mon."

"I'm surprised she didn't put me in a schoolgirl outfit with pigtails," Rose admits.

"Alice isn't exactly conventional. She thinks couple costumes are dumb."

Which makes it less surprising when Jasper comes over an hour later, dressed in a long sleeved, horizontal striped shirt, jeans with patches in the knees, those girly-looking big red sunglasses perched on top of his head, and classic Converse. His normal curly hair has been straightened into a messy look, some of it tucked behind his hair. His Kurt Cobain is pretty spot on, though, I have to give him credit. Or Alice, maybe.

The six of us chat and catch up while we set out drinks and snacks and things and prep the house for guests. I'm not sure who all is coming, but I know we're expecting quite a few people. Apparently Rose and Edward invited some people they knew from high school, too, so there will be a lot of new faces. Rose apparently was quite the popular one before college, but decided to keep more to herself when she left high school.

Around eight, the first of the guests arrive, and I recognize them as some of the people I see around school every once in awhile with Rose. Jake and Leah arrive a few minutes later, Jake dressed as a police officer and Leah in a simple black shirt with a skeleton printed on it. I didn't really take her as one to really dress up, so I'm not all that surprised.

Some more people that Emmett apparently knew from his time at UMass file in, two of them carrying a keg, and Em shows them where to set it up in the kitchen. More people that I've seen around campus arrive, and I finally catch Riley as he walks in the door. It's the most friendly face I've seen all night.

He's dressed as Clark Kent, slacks and a button up shirt open to reveal a Superman shirt underneath, black-rimmed glasses on his face, and one little chunk of hair curled down over his forehead. He looks good, I'm willing to admit, and I hug him in greeting.

"Hey, I'm glad you made it," I tell him. "Want anything to drink?"

"Do a shot or two with me? I need something before Bree shows up," he pleads, staring at me with those big, beautiful eyes. I chuckle at him and grab two plastic shot glasses.

"We've got vodka, tequila, rum, or whiskey. Pick your poison." I gesture at the bottles lining the counter. He points at the bottle of Fireball and slings his arm across my shoulder as I pour. It feels natural to be friendly like this with him, and I'm glad to have someone around that I knew before Boston, besides Alice. Alice is great, obviously, but sometimes I need a little change of pace. Riley and I get along and he's actually been an even better friend than before, recently. I thought we were close when we were in high school, but we definitely are there for each other more now.

As soon as we toss back the first shot, which tastes deliciously like Hot Tamales, Riley gestures for me to pour another, so I oblige him and take the second shot, as well. This is my first bit of alcohol for the night, so I plan to pace myself a little bit. I want to be in a constant state of tipsy, unlike previous times where I've gotten pretty plastered all at once and then cooled off for the rest of the night. I've learned my lesson already.  
"Better?" I ask once I've closed the bottle. I know he's nervous about initiating conversation with Bree tonight, but I believe in him. I mean, he got me back in the day, right? Granted, I was probably a bit easier than a college girl, but Riley is charming and he's genuinely a nice guy. Bree have to be blind and deaf to not notice how great he is.

"Give me a few minutes," he jokes, flashing me a smile.

At that moment, I see Bree come in the door, a familiar looking girl hooking arms with her. They're both smiling and head in our direction, obviously looking for booze. Bree looks really good tonight in a slightly sexy but not overtly so rendition of a Little Red Riding Hood costume. The skirt is a little short and the white socks hit mid thigh, but she's wearing flats instead of heels, and only a little bit of cleavage is showing. The girl next to her is dressed as Princess Jasmine, her long dark hair even styled like in the movie.

"Now's your chance," I tell Riley, nodding toward where Bree and the other girl are walking. "Go get 'em, tiger." I give him a little shove with my hip as his arm drops from my shoulder. He glances at me with a nervous expression, and I widen my eyes to urge him to go. This is his opportunity.

I watch as Riley walks over to where Bree is now standing by the keg. There's a soft smile on his face that I definitely remember, and I can't help but smile myself when I see Bree's eyes light up. I nearly fist pump the air when I see them start talking. The girl that arrived with Bree says something with a smile before walking away. She ends up near me, leaning against a counter, watching their interaction.

"You a friend of Riley's?" she suddenly asks me, glancing down to make eye contact. She's several inches taller than me, probably almost six foot, but she's very pretty in a soft sort of way. Her hair is nearly black and her eyes are slightly slanted, and I'm guessing she's probably at least part Asian.

"Yeah, we went to high school together," I tell her. "How do you know Bree?"

"We're roommates," she says, giving me a smile. "I'm Angela, by the way. Those two are pretty into each other."

"Bella. I know," I huff, rolling my eyes. "I've had to pep talk Riley so many times to get him to talk to her."

Her eyes widen, and I wonder if I've said something I shouldn't have. "Really? Riley Biers needed a pep talk in order to talk to Bree? I find that hard to believe."

"Not just one pep talk-several. On multiple occasions. He looks like a bad boy, but he's a pretty timid guy underneath the tattoos and piercings." Unlike some other tattooed bad boys I know.

"Who do you know here besides Riley?" she asks after nodding at my explanation. I'm glad that's all the discussion we're going to have about our two friends.

"The Cullens, actually. Rose and I are really good friends. I work with Edward and Emmett."

"You're a tattoo artist?" She seems a little surprised, and I don't blame her. You can see a lot of my skin tonight, and not a single part of it is covered in ink.

"No, I take photos for their portfolios and I'm a receptionist of sorts. I just help out around the shop. How do you know the Cullens?"

"I actually have a lot of classes with Edward. I'm a music major, too. We've become pretty close over the years." She shrugs like that isn't the weirdest thing I've heard in awhile. Edward has other friends?

"Oh, that's cool. What do you play?" I am actually interested to find out. I take her for more of a classical musician, and I've only ever heard Edward play the guitar, so I'm not sure how those would cross paths.

"The cello. We actually are playing a duet together in the winter recital." This is even more surprising.

"What is he playing?" Apparently, Edward plays more than just the guitar.

"He hasn't told you?" she asks, her expression quizzical.

I shake my head. "Edward and I aren't very close. I've only ever heard him play the guitar, and that was just because I could hear it through the walls."

"He's a concert trained pianist and violinist," she explains, and I'm sure the shock on my face is evident. She giggles. "He plays guitar and drums, too, but he plays piano and violin most often at school. He's playing the piano at this one."

"Jeez, I had no idea," I admit.

There's obviously a lot I don't know about Edward Cullen.

}ACH{

 **EPOV**

Of course she is dressed up as Viv from Pretty Woman. And of course she looks ten times better than Julia Roberts. At thirteen, I thought Julia Roberts in her streetwalker outfit was the hottest thing to ever exist. Now, at twenty-one, I knew Bella in Viv's streetwalker outfit was so much better. It was sexy, but not trashy, even though JB has more curves than Julia Roberts would ever dream of having. Her skin is perfect and silky against the white and blue of the dress, and the boots are almost too much, but she pulls them off. Her hair, usually in a normal disarray of waves, is in curls that are like a mane around her head, and I want to grip my hand in it.

I'm staring at her from across the kitchen as she talks with that Riley fucker. He has his arm slung across her shoulder and she's pouring shots for the both of them. I know I'm glaring at his arm, where it's touching her smooth shoulders, and I know I look absolutely ridiculous. I want it to be my arm across her shoulder, her warm little body pressed into my side. Her hands may have been freezing that night out in the clearing, but her body pressed into mine had nearly been hot enough to start a fire.

I hardly notice how much beer I've been drinking until I tip the bottle back and come up empty. The sneer I shoot the bottle is not really meant for the beer, but I can't really give Riley a nasty look for no apparent reason. We had been cool enough with each other last year, back when he was just a guy in my required biology class, but now he's the guy that JB's seeing, and I hate him on principle.

Tossing my empty bottle into the recycling can, I grab another one from the fridge and pop the top open on the countertop. Mom hates it when I do that when she's around, but what she doesn't know won't hurt her. Like how I took Bella to the clearing well after midnight and kissed her when I knew full well that she was seeing someone. I'm already going to hell, so what's one more offense?

Emmett sidles up to me then and throws his arm around my shoulder. "You just gonna stand here and stare at JB all night?"

I grunt at him, because his question doesn't deserve an answer. I know he knows about my apparent infatuation with JB, but I don't need to encourage it any further. The less he knows, the better.

"Oh, c'mon. She's dressed as the first woman you ever jerked off to. You can't tell me that there's not some scandalous images running through your head right now."

A thought dawns on me, and I groan out loud in frustration. "You told her about that?" I'm about two seconds from punching him in the throat for telling Bella about my Pretty Woman thing, but he speaks and kind of amends it.

"Nah, I'd never do that. Besides, JB didn't know what her costume was until a couple hours ago. Alice picked out her costume, too."

Oh. So, it's just a really weird, freaky coincidence.

"But I may have let slip to Alice about your fantasy when we got drunk on JB's birthday."

Now I'm pissed again. I move us into the hallways behind the staircase so no one will see me fight my best friend. Last thing we need is the cops getting called on our asses. There's so much underage drinking going on, we'd all be hauled off to jail for the night, and then Mom and Dad will be really pissed. I cannot live through my mom's ire.

"What the fuck, Em? Seriously? Should I tell her about you pregnant women fetish?" It's the best thing I have, and I'm not above fighting dirty.

He raises his hands in defense. "Hey, she reciprocated the information. She told me she deliberately made you Brad Pitt from Fight Club because it has always been prime spank bank material for JB since the first time she watched it when she was twelve. So she's being tortured just as much as you are."

I look down at the weird bird printed shirt I'm wearing and the red leather jacket. This is the type of thing that got JB all hot and bothered? I guess to each their own, but I do have to admit that Brad Pitt is a legend. I have to say she has good taste in men, at least.

"Oh, shit," Em suddenly says, his eyes focused somewhere over my shoulder. I glance back, too, and I curse as I see who just walked in the door.

* * *

 **I think we can all guess who just walked in haha. But, if I kept writing what all was planned for this chapter, it would have been like 10,000 words, so I cut it off here. The rest of Halloween will be covered in the next chapter, and then we'll do a bit of a jump to Thanksgiving.**

 **As always, leave all you questions, comments, or concerns in a review. I read each and every single one of them, even if I don't respond to them. I try, but then I get busy in the middle of replying, and then I lose track of who I last responded to, and it turns into a mess. But, I do read all of them! So please leave me some love. It's always great motivation to get the next chapter out faster.**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	10. These Are My Confessions

**Guys. You should be so proud of me. I said no updates until the new year, but look who's updating on NYE. And, this one is about a thousand words longer than previous chapters, so you're welcome ;)**

 **I really hope you guys enjoy this one, because I definitely enjoyed writing it. And I lied about the Thanksgiving thing. I got a little carried away while writing, so Thanksgiving will be in the next update. But I think it will be forgivable given what happens in this chapter ;)**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter Ten**

 **THESE ARE MY CONFESSIONS**

 **EPOV**

"Who the fuck invited her?" I seethe. I can feel my free hand clenching into a fist at my side, but I can't do anything to make it relax. I'm obviously not going to hit her, but my body's natural reaction to something unsavory is to tense up.

"Obviously, it wasn't any of us," Em is quick to supply, but I already knew that. "Word travels, man. She probably just heard it from somebody at school."

I sigh and squeeze my eyes shut. I go to run my hand through my hair, but recoil as soon as I come into contact with the gelled, crunchy strands. I forgot about all the crap Squirt had me put in it to make it look all spiked at messy. I scowl, and I don't know whether it's because of my hair or because my ex-girlfriend just walked into my house, looking like she's already well on her way to passing out on one of my couches.

 _Definitely the ex-girlfriend thing._

I turn back to Em, so that my back is to the kitchen. "Hopefully, I can just avoid her for the night. She'll probably get drunk enough that she won't be able to see straight."

"A little late for that, Eddie," Em mutters. He nods over my shoulder and I turn to see Irina making her way to where Em and I are standing, her icy eyes locked onto me. She's never one for classy outfits, being too much in love with her fake tits, but she's really looking like something straight out of a turn of the century, low-budget rap video right now.

I think she's supposed to be some type of fairy or something, since she's got sparkly wings on her back, but she looks like she's better suited for a rave than a house party, and there's no way she wasn't freezing on her walk up our drive. I'm fairly certain part of her nipples are slipping out of the top of the bra thing she's wearing, but I can't be completely sure in this lighting, and I don't want to get close enough to definitively find out.

I'm bracing myself for having to speak to her, when she pauses by the kitchen island and glances to her right. I look where her eyes are trained and groan when I see Bella standing in the corner of the kitchen with Angela, one of my friends from school. I want to intercept Irina before she gets to JB, but Bella has already noticed that Irina is looking at her. I'm still half tempted to go over there and distract my ex before she starts something she can't finish, but Em rests a hand on my shoulder. A glance back at him reveals a smirk on his face.

"Let it happen. JB can hold her own. And I wanna see what'll happen." He wiggles his eyebrows at me suggestively. Emmett is always one for a good girl fight. Creep.

I take his advice, though, and watch as Bella and Irina interact. Even though I saw her take a few shots earlier, JB doesn't look any worse for wear, or they haven't hit her yet, but Irina's eyes are kind of glassy, eve from this distance, and I can see her struggling to stay upright in her heels. She's waving a finger in JB's face, like this is some bad nineties comedy, and Bella just has her arms crossed over her chest, one eyebrow raised as she listens to whatever the fuck Irina is spewing. She doesn't look amused, and when Irina's finally done with her tirade, JB looks to utter about two sentences before she walks away. I can see Alice and my sister in her line of sight, so I let them be and refocus on Irina, who is sure to come over here, once she gets her bearings, because she's still standing there with a slightly concerned-looking Angela, staring into space. She snaps out of, talks to Angela, and with some guidance, walks over to where Em and I are standing.

I knew this was coming, but I'm still pissed that she's here. I think both the girls can tell by the look on my face that I'm not in the mood. Angela speaks before Irina can open her big trap.

"She's very drunk and probably needs to lie down. It took her about two minutes to get a few sentences out. She's really fucked up, Edward," Angela says, her brown eyes wide and serious.

"Eddie!" Irina shouts before I can respond to Angela. She has one arm slung across the other girl's shoulders for support, and I am more than aware that Irina would never dream of being within a twenty foot radius of Angela if she wasn't completely hammered.

"You smell like a seedy bar," I tell her as I gather her into my arms. Angela shoots me a relieved smile before walking off.

"Baby! You loo-look so fucking...good ton-tonight," she hiccups, reaching up to run her hands through my hair. I pull back from her touch, because I really don't want her touching me more than she already is.

"Jesus, she smells like a bottle of liquor," Em mutters. He moves to the other side of her, since she's now slumping down, not supporting any of her own weight. While she's not fat or anything, she's not exactly the lightest person in the world, and she's being especially difficult, since she's still trying to get her hands into my hair.

"Help me get her to one of the guest rooms. Hopefully she'll pass out for a few hours and then wake up less fucked up before we get everyone out."

"Dude, Alice and JB are staying in both of the guest rooms," he tells me.

"Shit. Can't they just share if she's still there by the time we get to bed?" I hadn't thought about that problem, but I was banking on the hope that Irina would wake the hell up before we all went to sleep.

"Both of them can't stand her. They'd be pissed forever if you gave their beds to her."

Fuck. He has a point. Squirt would make my life hell for the foreseeable future, and JB would make the communication worse than it already is, and I'm not sure if I could handle that. Granted, I was being a pretty big pussy about my feelings for her already, but I didn't want to screw it up even more.

"Dammit. Fine, we'll put her in my room. I'll just crash on the couch if she's still her later."

We begin to make the long trek up the staircase to the third floor. No one else is up there, since the party is being contained to the first and second floors. The music that was once loud mixed with the voices and laughter of our guests quiets to a dull muffle once we make it to the first landing. Irina keeps catching her damn heels on the steps, making this process a lot longer and more difficult than it needs to be.

"Eddie, baby. Will you co-come to bed...with me?" she slurs out when we're only a few steps from the third floor landing. "You look so h-hot."

I can hear Emmett snickering on the other side of her, but I try to ignore him, especially since Irina is number one on the 'people who are annoying me' list, at the current moment.

"Irina, we're not dating anymore. I'm not going to sleep with you."

She makes a whiny whimpering sound that I'm not a fan of at all. "But we fu-fucked before...before we were dating."

"That was a mistake." Thankfully, we've made it to my bedroom, so Em and I lay her down on the bed. I take her wings off while Em slips off her shoes. I may not be with her anymore, but I'm not a complete asshole. Usually. Most of the time.

Luckily, Irina is asleep before Em and I even turn to leave the room. I pause before turning back around and tossing a blanket over her. It can get pretty cold in the middle of the night up this high in the house. Like I said, I'm not a total asshole.

"Guess you dodged a bullet on that one," Em says as soon as the door is closed.

"Thank God. I actually wanted to enjoy this night."

"Can I actually talk to you real quick before we go back down there, man?" This is an odd request, considering how serious Em seems all of a sudden. The one and only time we've ever had a serious conversation before this was when he told me he loved my sister and he was moving into our apartment. Hopefully he wasn't telling me he was going to ask her to marry him or something. I knew they were heading there at some point, but Rose is only nineteen, and I don't think anyone in my family would be particularly fond of that.

"Sure, what's up?" _Don't freak out until you actually know what's going on._

"What's going on with you and JB?"

I suppress a groan. Talking about this almost makes me want to make him talk about marrying Rose instead. Almost.

"What do you mean?" _Okay, play dumb. Maybe he's just wondering. Em isn't always the most perceptive person._

"I mean, I know you kissed her when her and Squirt stayed over here, and then you started ignoring her again."

Shit. So someone, probably Squirt or JB herself, had told him about the meadow thing a few weeks ago. And it had been pretty obvious that I have been avoiding contact with Bella since then. I just didn't think anyone else had noticed beside the two of us. We're back to acting how we did when Irina had threatened to cut off my balls and feed them to me raw if I was friendly with JB. There was really only a week where we had been working on being friends before I went and fucked it up by kissing her. I didn't think anyone else had noticed that there was any change at all.

Apparently, I was taking too long to say anything, so Emmett continued. "And I know you've had feelings for that girl since you laid eyes on her, but you're somehow too emotionally unavailable to do anything not stupid about it. And you two dancing around each other because you're an emotional invalid is tearing both of you apart."

 _Huh. Emmett was apparently very perceptive. He just has a habit of keeping observations to himself. Dually noted._

I wasn't even going to try to deny that he was right. Two months of keeping it to myself and beating around the bush if he asked was tiring, and I actually appreciated his concern. "How am I supposed to do anything if I don't even know how she feels. I'm not gonna be that prick that's like, 'Yeah, JB, I'm really into you and I think we could be great,' and end up having her tell me that she doesn't feel that way about me."

"Dude, that's not going to happen."

"How do you know that? Are you psychic now, Em?"

He shakes his head and huffs, probably in exasperation. I know I'm a pain in the ass, but that doesn't stop me from being one. "Dude, just talk to her. Like, really talk to her. I know you don't know each other all that well, but she's really cool, Ed. You don't know each other well enough to be into each other. Try being friends again, first."

When the hell did he get so insightful?

I was about to thank him when he slugged me in the arm really damn hard. "Ow, what the fuck?" I reach up to rub at the now tender spot.

"That's for kissing JB and then being a pussy about it afterward. What the fuck were you thinking, E? Are you really that dumb?"

"I was thinking she looked really beautiful in the moonlight, all concentrated on her photography and shivering." Fuck, I sound like a girl.

"You have some sort of art fetish or something?" he laughs, punching my arm lightly in jest this time, but it still fucking hurts. I think he's doing it on purpose.

"She just looked good, Em. I mean, she always looks good, but something was different right then, man."

His look softens from mirthful to wistful, which is a little strange. "I feel that way about Rosie sometimes. You've got it bad, E."

"Fuck." When did this turn into a sap-fest? And I definitely didn't feel the same way about Bella that Em felt about Rose. I hardly knew the girl, as he had pointed out, I certainly wasn't in love with her.

"Just do what I said and everything will work out fine." He slaps a hand onto my shoulder.

"When did you turn into the Gandhi of relationships?"

He just grins at me. Fucker

Three hours later, and some girl was trying to get me to dance with her in my parent's living room. Normally, I'd be all over it, but I can't take my eyes off of where Bella, Riley, and some other chick were laughing and drinking. Bella looks too damn good in her costume, and I want her to be talking and laughing with me, not Riley. He's a cool enough guy, but the fact that he has so much of JB's attention irked me.

I disentangle myself from the needy drunk girl, and make my way back upstairs to grab a drink. I lost my buzz a while ago, and I need something stronger if I was going to make it through this night watching Bella hang out with some guy I know that she slept with. I quickly down a few shots with a guy I have seen around in some of my music classes. He's plastered, but I still can't feel the affects by the time I make it back downstairs.

When I see Bella again, she's standing by Riley and that other girl, but now Alice and Jasper have joined her. I walk up to their little group and catch the tail end of their conversation.

"...leaving me! Who am I gonna hang out with now?" Despite her non-slurred speech, JB is very obviously drunk by the whine in her voice and the little pout she's sporting. She never did that shit when she was sober, so I know she's pretty drunk. Plus, she's swaying where she stands, and Jasper has to reach out several times in order to keep her from falling over. She's a little bit of a mess, but no where near to how catastrophic Irina had been.

"Em and Rose are still here," Alice points out. "You should probably get to bed soon anyway, B. You're plastered."

JB looks like she's about to protest, but then thinks better of it. "You're right. But I was having fun. And there were people to take care of me. Em and Rose are too busy boning to make sure I don't do anything stupid."

I think I throw up in my mouth a little.

Alice finally notices me just outside the little group that has crowded around Bella. "Edward can take care of you."

JB must not see me, because her pout gets even more pronounced and her eyes seem to genuinely fill with tears. It makes my chest hurt.

"Edward wouldn't take care of me. He doesn't even like me. Why doesn't he like me, Al? I'm pretty, right? I mean, I got a senior boy my sophomore year of high school, and we fucked all the time."

Riley actually has the audacity to laugh while that pain in my chest intensifies. She thinks I don't like her because I don't think she was pretty? What a fucking joke. I nearly mauled her the first time I laid eyes on her. I still can't take my eyes off of her when we're in the same room.

"You're absolutely beautiful, babe. You know this. Edward knows this," Alice says, glancing back at me for confirmation. I nod and she continues. "Now, go with Edward so the rest of us can leave." Tiny little Alice grabs me by the shoulders and steers me so I'm face to face with JB.

Bella gives a little, "Oh," of surprise as she sways on the spot, and I reach out instinctively to steady her. Her eyes meet mine and there are definitely tears there. I barely keep myself from cursing at being the reason she's on the verge of crying, however inadvertent it may be.

"She's a very emotional drunk, after she gets past the 'wanting to hump everything with a dick' thing, so fair warning," Alice says. "The four of us are heading out, so take care of her please. She'll probably be ready to knock out soon."

I nod and they are gone before Bella can even process it.

I stand silently with her while she gets her bearings. She's still swaying a little, so I keep my hands around her biceps, trying to make sure she doesn't topple over. When she finally comes around, she looks up at me with an earnest look in her eyes.

 _God, she's beautiful._

"Why'd you kiss me and then stop talking to me?"

Fuck, not this. I do owe her an explanation and an apology, but I'm not sure she'll remember any of this in the morning.

"How about we get you ready for bed and we can talk about this?" I suggest. She looks like she's about ready to pass out, and I want her to be comfortable when she does that. No need to wake up in the costume from the night before.

She nods and allows me to wrap my arm around her waist to steer her and keep her upright. I can tell exactly how hammered she is as we walk up the stairs. She grips tightly to the railing with one hand and has a death grip around my waist with the other, her little fingers clenching the fabric of this ridiculous shirt. Having the perfect reincarnation of my childhood crush pressed against me and hanging on me is doing a whole lot of things to my body, but I am trying to be a gentleman and just help her to the guest room she's staying in.

When we finally get there, I set her on the bed, and she immediately lies across it, her legs dangling off the side. Since she doesn't seem to be capable of doing it herself, I kneel down and take her boots off, refraining from running my hands over the smooth skin of her legs as it is revealed. I also realize I can see straight up her skirt from this angle, and she's not wearing any shorts under it. All I see is light pink lace, and I berate my boner for popping up right now. She startles me out of my concentration when she speaks.

"You never answered my question."

I sigh, realizing that I'm not getting out of this one tonight, even if she doesn't remember a second of it in the morning.

"I kissed you because you're beautiful and I like you, but I stopped talking to you because I'm a dick and a pussy and just stupid."

She leans on her elbows to look down at me from her position on the bed, a perplexed expression on her face. "How can you be a dick and a pussy at the same time? That's physically impossible. Unless you were born with both sets of genitalia, and your doctor was kind enough to let you keep both until you're old enough to decide which one you want for yourself. But I don't think that's what your issue is."

It takes me a second to realize she's actually talking about intersex individuals, and not the personality traits of being a dick and a pussy simultaneously, but when I do, I can't help but laugh. What drunk teenage girl is thinking this deeply about social issues?

"I meant figuratively, JB. I'm a dick because I knew full well that ignoring you after that night would hurt you, but I was a pussy because I didn't think-don't think-I can handle my own feelings toward you and the implications of that night."

"Oh," is all she says for several moments. I take her extended silence as her thinking of something else to ask, so I get moving again while she's deciding. I find her overnight bag and am relieved when a tank top and sweats are the first articles of clothing I come across. I help her into her sweats, pulling them up over her skirt and then tugging it out and up to her waist. Good, got her in pants without looking at her panties again.

"Edward?" she asks as I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to get her tank top on and the rest of the dress off without seeing anything. I want to see her naked badly, but it'll be on her terms if it ever happens. I'm many things, but a sexual harasser is not one of them.

"Hmm?" I hum, as I finally figure it out. I'm lifting her into an upright position by her limp arms when she responds.

"I don't hate you for ignoring me, but I do kind of dislike you for making me feel like this."

I'm surprised by her comment. "What do you mean?" I slip the tank top over her head and get her arms through the holes.

"You're so back and forth with the way you act around me. It's giving me whiplash. I just want you to be you." I grab the straps of her costume and slide them off her arms one at a time.

"And who am I, exactly?" It's a question I've been asking myself for a long time now. Besides my music and my art, who am I? Who is Edward Cullen, in the long run? Because, so far, he's a pretty ugly person when it comes to others and relationships, and I'm not really proud of it.

"I think you're actually really caring and sweet and thoughtful and funny under all that defensiveness and sarcasm and snide comments, but I don't know for sure." I finally slip the top of her dress down to her waist to join the skirt I had pulled up earlier.

"My guess is just as good as yours," I tell her honestly.

She cocks her head to the side and looks at me through squinted eyes. "It's not a guess. I've seen it before, Edward. Every once in awhile, the real you comes out and he's great. And I like him, a lot. I mean, I really like cocky, sarcastic Edward, too, because he's pretty hot, but I think you can be both without hiding either of them completely."

Jesus. Between her and Emmett, I'm going to have a whole slew of new things to live by.

I bunch her dress up and pull of over her head on the outside of the clothes I just put on her. There, no accidental flashing.

"I know you're right, but I don't know how to do it." This is the most deep conversation I've ever had with anyone, and the other participant isn't going to remember any of it.

"It doesn't have to happen overnight," she assures me, placing a comforting hand on my bicep. I can feel her heat through the fabric of the jacket. "But I think you can do it. I really like you, Edward, but I think I'd like you even more if you were really you around me."

I realize that I want her to like me that much more. Now that I've got the reassurance that she does actually like me, I want to do what I can to make it easier on her. I've been a dick for two months and it's honestly tiring. I want to make her happy. I want to try to be me for her.

Boldly, I reach out and cup her cheek in my hand, and she leans into it. "I'll try, JB. I'll try for you."

She gives me a soft smile that makes my heart skip a beat, and I've never felt that just from seeing someone smile. Bella is different, though. I'm starting to understand that. I'm sure I'll fuck up more times than either of us can count, but I want to try for her. I want to be good for her.

Bella yawns and I take that as my cue to go. "You should lay down and get to sleep."

Her hand shoots up to grip my wrist as I start to pull my hand from her face. She keeps it there as she looks at me.

"Stay with me. Just until I fall asleep."

I know I should tell her no, that it's not a good idea because I'm not just going to sit here and watch her fall asleep like some psycho stalker. But the pleading look in her eyes has me nodding and taking my jacket off. She scoots herself under the covers, seeming to have regained some of her motor functions from her struggle with the stairs earlier. I shift back on the bed and lean against the headboard while she gets comfortable.

Bella scrunches her eyebrows up and looks at me. "Lay down with me. That doesn't look comfortable." I open my mouth to protest, but she cuts me off. "Just do it, Edward. We're adults, we can handle this."

I realize at that moment I don't even have an escape from this, either. I don't want to go back to the party, which is still going on from the music I can hear even from here, and my bed is currently occupied by my ex-girlfriend, which is even more fucked up than the situation that I'm in right now. I sigh and toe off my shoes and slide down so I'm lying on the pillow beside Bella. I'm still on top of the covers, so there's something between us, but she gives me a satisfied smile.

She sighs and closes her eyes, finally. She yawns one more time before muttering a, "Goodnight, Edward." I reciprocate in a whisper, but I can tell she's asleep before I've uttered the whole thing. Her breathing is even and slow, and her face is completely relaxed. There's makeup on her face still, and I know that's going to be a bitch in the morning, from years of living with Rose. I should've helped her take that off, too, but it was a struggle enough to get her into her pajamas.

I reach behind me and turn the light off. I know she said to stay just until she fell asleep, but her breathing is soothing and it's rhythm is making my breathing match it. I'm asleep beside her before I can even try to convince myself to get out of the bed.

}ACH{

 **BPOV**

Sunday morning, I wake up with a raging headache, a fuzzy mouth, and a very warm body pressed up against my back, a muscular arm draped across my waist. I avoid a full out panic attack about possibly sleeping with someone last night when I smell the familiar scent of cigarette smoke and clean boy. The stiffness in my body from realizing I'm sharing a bed with a man goes away when my mind processes who it is.

I sigh and relax back into his warm body. Despite having far too much to drink, I do remember all of the previous night. For whatever reason, all my mental faculties stay when I get drunk, but my body doesn't exactly cooperate. So, I remember him helping me up to my room, helping me change, and our conversation about Edward's behavior. I remember the way he held my face and promised to try to let me see the real Edward. I remember asking him to stay with me until I fell asleep, but he must have fallen asleep not long after I did.

The urge to stay here in his embrace is strong, but my need to take some pain relievers, drink a shit ton of water, use the restroom, and brush my teeth is just a little bit stronger. I'm just working up the energy it takes to extract myself from Edward to get to the restroom when I feel him stirring against me. He huffs out a breath, and I can feel it against the back of my neck. His hold on my waist tightens as he flexes. There's a layer of blankets between us, but I can feel all of him when he presses his hips into me.

Edward chooses that moment to wake up fully. "Shit," he hisses as he creates space between our lower halves. "Sorry, Bella."

My heart flutters at the sound of my name falling from his lips. It's the first time I've heard him call me by my real name since the first time I met him. I didn't realize how much it would affect me.

"It's okay," I reassure. I squeeze his forearm before I remove it from around me. "I'll be right back."

I get up and grab my toiletry bag off the dresser and go to the restroom without looking at Edward. I'm sure there's makeup smudged around my eyes, and I don't really want him to see that.

When I get to the bathroom, I quickly do my business, brush my teeth, and clean the leftover makeup off my face. I'm relieved to see that Edward is still in the room when I get back, sitting facing the door. He looks up at me when I close the door behind me and his eyes are lighter than I've ever seen them. The corners of his lips curl up in a soft smile, and I reciprocate it.

"Here, I brought you some painkillers and water," he says. I see the bottle of water and a few little blue gel pills sitting on the nightstand next to him, and my smile widens.

"Thanks. My head is killing me." I stand before him and take two of the pills and drain half the bottle. I should learn by now that I should really drink water while I'm drinking, but I never do, and I always end up dehydrated the next day.

Edward just stares at me as I stand there. His right hand lifts from where it's resting on his lap, and he reaches out as if he's going to touch me, but he hesitates and drops it back to his lap. The look on his face is like he's thinking hard and contemplating.

"Edward?" I say, getting his attention.

"Yeah?"

"I remember our conversation last night, if that's what you're wondering."

The relief that washes over his features is evident. His shoulders even seem to relax.

"You do?" he asks.

I nod and give him a little smile. "Yeah. I'm surprisingly coherent even when I'm that drunk. My body just doesn't seem to get the message."

He chuckles. "Yeah, you were pretty useless. Like a limp noodle."

I laugh too, but we both trail off and we're left in a strange silence, looking everywhere but at each other. I was afraid the morning would lead to this; this strange moment where we don't know where we go from here or what's going to happen now that everything's out there. I want to see where something between Edward and I could go, but I know he just got out of a relationship, and the age difference between us is probably a little weird for him. And there have been no guarantees that he won't go back to acting weird around me. He said last night that he'd try, but that doesn't mean anything is going to be amended right now. I accept that possibility, but I'm anxious for him to tell me how this is going to go.

"Bella…." There's my name again, and this time butterflies flutter around in my stomach. This time, when he reaches up, his hand actually makes contact, and he wraps it gently around the back of my thigh. Thank God for the sweats I'm wearing, because if his hand touched my bare skin, I'd probably have melted into the floor.

"Edward."

"You know how I feel. And I know how you feel."

"Yes."

"And I'm really done with doing this thing where we skirt around each other."

"Me, too."

"But I don't want to jump into something we don't actually know is going to work. We don't actually know each other very well."

"I agree."

"So I stand by my suggestion a couple weeks ago that we be friends first and then work up to something."

I nod. "I think that's a good idea." And I do, because I think Edward and I can be something great, but I don't want to ruin it because we know too little about each other and fall apart due to something that would've been easy to fix if we knew each other better. I wasn't willing to risk something like that with him. I may not know Edward on a personal level, but I know I would hate to lose him without really knowing him.

}ACH{

 _November 14th, 2015_

 _2:37 pm_

"Bella! You're here early," Kate says as she greets me, smiling. They're getting ready in one of the back rooms of the church that her cousin, Tanya is getting married in. She hugs me gingerly, obviously not wanting to mess up her hair that's up in large curlers. The other bridesmaids are in the room, along with Tanya and what appears to be Tanya's mother. They're all in various places, either getting their hair or makeup done.

"Brides sometimes like to have pictures of all the preparation stuff. I figured I would show up just in case," I shrug. People like to see the candid shots almost more than the posed photos.

"Oh, Bella! That's a great idea," Tanya says. Tanya is every bit as pretty as her cousin. Same platinum blond hair, bright blue eyes, and tall, curvy build. Her hair is done up, but her face is free of makeup and she's still in a blue satin robe. She's still one of the most beautiful people I've ever seen.

For the next hour or so, I walk around the room, snapping photos of the wedding party as they get ready. I get lots of shots of them laughing and goofing around with each other. They all look amazing, and I tell them I'm heading out before I go over to where the guys are getting ready to take similar pictures. I'm there until the groom leaves to take his place at the altar, and the groomsmen walk out to the foyer before the chapel to meet up with the rest of the wedding party. I take pictures as they all mill about, and I even get a few shots of Tanya talking happily with the flower girl and ring bearer, who are her future husband's kids from his previous marriage. They're four, and they're the cutest damn things I've ever seen.

About five minutes before the ceremony begins, Alice bustles up in a pretty dark blue dress and a peacoat. Kate and Tanya told me I could invite someone to hang out with my throughout the night so I wouldn't feel so out of place with the wedding party, which is very kind of them. I had never really thought about that before, since we all pretty much knew each other in Forks, and I was bound to always know at least a few people I could talk to in any given wedding. It is nice to see a familiar face, though.

She squeezes my hand and walks into the room to take her seat near the middle of the room. I won't be joining her for this part of the night, since I'll be up and taking photos, but we'll be able to hang out more for the reception.

Piano music starts up behind the closed wood doors, and I see Tanya take a big breath. I take one last photo of everyone as they get in their respective pairs before I enter the room before them to take pictures as they walk down the aisle. As I snap the first few photos of Kate and Garrett's, the groom, brother, I marvel at the perfection that is this lighting. Tanya has made a good decision with the location and time, because the soft glow of the evening sun is beautiful. Everyone looks amazing as they smile and look at the people in attendance.

I get a cute picture of the ring bearer and flower girl with linked arms walking down the aisle before Tanya emerges, with her dad by her side. She's beaming, and I make sure to swing around real quick to get a photo of Garrett's expression when he first sees his bride. He has tears in his eyes and a smile on his face, and Tanya has the same expression when I turn back to her.

When everyone finally settles in their places, I'm able to take a good look around at the chapel. That's when I realize the piano music has been live and not played on a soundtrack, because my eyes meet the pianist's and my heart stutters.

Edward looks more handsome than I have ever thought possible in his charcoal grey suit with a white shirt that has no tie and the first couple buttons undone. His hair looks like there has been an attempt to tame it, but it still looks like his usual mess, which suits him just fine, even at this formal event. The piano is faced so that the audience can see his profile, but it's facing my direction. He smiles softly at me as we look at each other, and I offer him one back.

I can't focus on him for too long, though, because I have strict instructions to get shots of the bride and groom as the sun sets between them, particularly as they said 'I do'. That's still a few minutes off, but I don't want to accidentally miss it because I'm staring at Edward.

Once the pastor gets past the introductions and begins the actual ceremony, Edward begins playing again, softly so that the words being spoken can still be heard. I snap a few photos of the altar and the way the bride and groom's hands are clutched together lovingly. I can't help it when my camera's lens drifts just a little bit over to where Edward is playing. His eyes drift between the sheet music and the keys, and there's a slight sway to his body in time with the music. He looks absolutely beautiful, with his face more serene than I have ever seen. I snap a few photos before I realize his eyebrow piercing has been removed, and you can see just a slight hint of one of the tattoos on his chest through below the collar.

There's a clearing of a throat, but it sounds intentional, so I look in the direction it's come from and see Alice's pointed look, a little smug smile pulling at her lips. I told her a few days after Halloween about what happened between Edward and I, and she's been nothing but supportive since. She doesn't push me into ridiculous outfits anymore when we know I'm going to be seeing Edward. The few times that we've hung out with just the two of us, she always asks how it went when I get back to the dorm, but she never fishes for more information than I'm willing to give.

Because there's information that I have, but I don't want to share it with anyone. I've learned so much about Edward in the two weeks since Halloween and our agreement, and he hasn't once gone back to whatever dick/pussy combination he had been before.

True to our word, we're keeping things platonic, and it's been working out really well, so far. He invites me to the apartment when Rose and Emmett are out, but he orders food and we've gotten into the habit of watching an episode of Jeopardy! while we eat. He's incredibly smart, not that I'm all that surprised, but he's much more well read than I would've guessed. He didn't strike me as someone who spends their free time reading Dickinson, the Bronte sisters, or Whitman. Not to mention all the nerdy shit that he knows, and I'm not just talking superheros. No. This guy knows so much stuff about Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Supernatural, Doctor Who, and Sherlock, that it makes my nerdy little heart sing. Alice always refused to watch this stuff with me, since we usually stuck to primtime television dramas, but I had a nerdy heart within me that I nurtured on my own. Edward was a dream.

We always talk until Emmett and Rose come home, who also know about the development between Edward and me. I give Rose the same rundown that I give Alice, which frustrates her because I'm developing some sort of relationship with her older brother and she wants to know everything, but she respects that there's some things that need to be kept between us.

I've yet to see Edward shirtless again since the pool party at the beginning of the semester, but that's probably for the best, because I already want to jump that boy more than enough as it is. Between the little appearances his tongue ring makes whenever he licks his lips and the way the piercing in his eyebrow glints whenever he makes any sort of expression, it's a wonder I haven't broken our "friends" embargo and had my wicked way with him.

I'm strong and willful, but even I have my limits. And Edward is testing all of them.

* * *

 **So, there was chapter 10! I hope you guys liked it, because, like I said, I really enjoyed writing it! And this A/N is gonna be brief, because I am really trying to get this posted before it's midnight on the East Coast, just to say I posted it before 2017. I've got 25 minutes haha.**

 **So, lots happening in this chapter. The rest of the wedding, which hopefully won't be very long, and Thanksgiving are in the next chapter. This story will start moving along now that Edward and Bella understand each other and have talked. But Edward's stubborn, so don't expect the smoothest of sailing.**

 **Next chapter I will also be addressing my new projects I'm debating posting on here, but that won't be until next update. I'm still contemplating some things. Hopefully I'll have it figured out by then.**

 **As always, leave me some love. I read every single one of your reviews and I do my best to respond to all of them. So, if I didn't get to you, I am so sorry. I try, I really do.**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


	11. R U Mine?

**Good gracious. I am so sorry for the long wait. January has been kicking my ass, so I'm hoping February will be better.**

 **Anyway! I finally got around to finishing this chapter. It kept nagging at me to finish it, and I just couldn't find the time, and when I did, I couldn't think of what to write. It was awful, really.**

 **This chapter is a bit of a filler, but I'm gonna pick up on some plot again after this chapter. Things will get moving along, I promise.**

 **See you at the bottom!**

* * *

 **Chapter Eleven**

 **R U Mine?**

After the ceremony, Alice comes with me to a park that Tanya wants to have her wedding party photos taken. We drive behind the limo that is transporting all the people in the wedding. It's only about a fifteen minute drive from the chapel and I know the reception location is nearby. The sun has completely set at this point, and at the beginning of November, the temperature has dropped considerably. Luckily, I can wear my peacoat while I'm outside, but the wedding party is not so fortunate, so I plan to make this as quick as possible.

"Did you know Edward was going to be there?" I ask Alice as we pull away from the church.

She shakes her head as she checks her makeup in the visor mirror. "No. Rose said he was doing something today, but she didn't say what. I was just as surprised as you were when I walked in there and saw him sitting there. Although, I wasn't a weirdo and snapped his picture." She gives me a pointed look, but it's teasing, so I flip her off.

"I couldn't help it," I admit. "I didn't even really realize I was doing it. He just looked so fucking good sitting up there in that damn suit. And I've never seen him play before. I've never even heard him play anything beside that guitar."

"He is really talented. I looked up the sheet music for the song he was playing. It's fucking crazy. And his fingers were moving so fast, but he looked so relaxed."

"He has a recital in December. I'm thinking of going," I tell her, remembering the conversation I had with Angela at the Halloween party before I started to get hammered.

"Has he asked you to go?"

"No, he hasn't even mentioned it to me. But I'm sure Rose is going, so I'm just gonna go with her." I shrug. I don't think it's that big of a deal.

"Bella," she says, apparently exasperated.

"What?"

"You can't just go to his programs. If he doesn't mention it to you, then it's probably for a reason." What the fuck is she on about?

"Or he's Edward and doesn't think about those types of things. We're adults, Al. I'd really hope a twenty-one year old guy doesn't play shit like that anymore."

I see the pointed look she gives me out of the corner of my eye. "This is the boy that jerked you around for two months because he couldn't come to terms with his feelings."

I mean, she has a point. But I've gotten to know Edward a lot better since then. I don't think he'd intentionally not invite me to his recital. Maybe he just has a thing about people watching him perform. I hadn't even known he played anything other than the guitar until a couple weeks ago.

The discussion I have with Alice doesn't even matter, though, because that Monday, in my photography class, my teacher pulls me aside and gives me some news.

"Bella, can I talk with you real quick?" Maggie asks. She's pretty young and pretty much ordered us the first day of class to never call her Professor or her last name. She's probably only twenty-seven years old, so I can see why the title thing bugs her, but I just find it so amusing that she's so adamant about just being called Maggie.

"Sure, what's up?" Class has just been dismissed, and I'm still packing up my stuff, so I continue while she speaks to me.

She grabs a black portfolio off her desk and opens it up. A quick glance tells me it's mine that I gave to her at the beginning of the semester as an assignment in the class.

"You're a really fantastic photographer, Bella," she compliments, smiling. I thank her. "So, when the school newspaper told me they were looking for a new photographer to cover some events, since one of theirs is graduating early this semester, I told them I think you'd be great for the job."

I'm surprised by this. "Me? This is an intro class. There have to be people in other classes that have more experience than I do."

"I'm sure there are, and they're good, but you're better," she says frankly, and I'm a little shocked at her candor. "Those other kids are good because they've taught themselves and learned to be good. But you're good because you have a natural talent that you've built upon, and it shows. I've never seen an incoming freshman with such an incredible portfolio. I'd be concerned that you took them from someone else, but I've seen you in action. It's incredible, Bell."

I can feel myself blushing at her praise. No matter how used I've gotten to compliments and accepting them graciously, her comments are almost reverent, and I don't know how to respond. "Well...thank you."

"So, if you'll do it, the newspaper wants you to cover some events in the rest of November and December just to get your feet wet a little before the position needs to be completely filled next semester."

I'm not dumb enough to turn down the experience, both journalistic and photographic, that working on the school newspaper will be, so I tell her I'll do it.

She beams. "Great. Swim is in season right now, so they want you to cover the next home meet, which is the weekend after we get back from Thanksgiving, and then the winter music recital the weekend before we go on break."

I smile, finally. "Great, no problem."

}ACH{

 _November 17th, 2015_

 _1:25pm_

It's only a week before Thanksgiving break, and I have a research assignment due the Wednesday before we're off in my literature class. Unfortunately, it's an individual paper, so I don't have the pleasure of dragging Rose with me into the incredibly fascinating world of _A Wide Sargasso Sea_ (note the sarcasm). I absolutely love _Jane Eyre,_ and I would never choose Bertha over the love between Jane and Mr. Rochester, but the assignment is to discuss the prejudices exhibited toward the English and the Creole people, and I hate myself for even pretending to have sympathy for Antoinette. I know I probably should, and I get the subjects Jean Rhys is trying to discuss, I just am not a fan of the book.

So, here I am, tearing my hair out in the library, all by myself because both Alice and Rose are in class, and they'd probably just end up distracting me anyway. I want to get this stupid paper done sooner rather than later so that I can actually look forward to my break instead of worrying about getting this assignment done in time. I want nothing more than to head back to my dorm and take a nap or watch my shows for hours, but I am determined to get ahead of this thing so that Alice and I can have a relaxing weekend.

Rose informed us earlier in the week that her parents have invited Alice and me to their house for Thanksgiving, since there's no way that we're making it back to Washington for a four day weekend. We have the money saved up to catch a plane for the long weekend, but both our parents understand that it's too close to finals for the impromptu visit. We have every intention of heading back to Forks for the two weeks we get off for Christmas, so there's really only about three weeks until we'll be back home, anyway.

When I told Charlie that the Cullens had invited us to stay, he thought it was a great idea and was glad that I found a friend in Rose. I did not mention, however, that I was particularly fond of her older brother, who will also be at Thanksgiving. Charlie doesn't need to know about the Edward thing yet, so I just left him out of our conversation, except to say that he'd be there because he's related to Rose, but I had mentioned Emmett in the same breath. Charlie seemed none the wiser, as I intended. Edward and I aren't dating or anything, so I don't think it's necessary to say anything more about him, aside from him being Rose's brother. If things progress past our blossoming friendship, I'll tell Charlie about him. But that seems to be far off, at the moment.

I'm in the middle of writing a bullshit paragraph, complete with outstanding sources, about the prejudice against and between the Creoles and British in the time period, when a body slides into the booth I'm at, startling me. I've had my earbuds in, listening to classical music to help me focus, so I haven't been paying any attention to the goings on in the library. People are milling about and talking quietly, typing up essays or studying for tests and finals, I'm sure. I've been wrapped in my own bubble, silently grumbling about this stupid analytical essay and trying to sooth myself with the sounds of Mozart and Bach and Beethoven. I jump a little as the person saddles up to me.

I pull one earbud out and turn to scowl at him, even though his signature little smirk is on his face, making my stomach flutter pleasantly. I'm a little peeved that he startled me and more than a little curious as to how he found me in this deserted back corner on the second floor of the library, but I can't deny that I'm happy to see him. Things have been a little more busy than usual for the both of us with the holiday coming up, so the only time we really see each other is at the shop, but even that's busy, so we never get to do more than say hello and make small talk as he's with a client. The last time I had him to myself was Friday of last week, when Rose and Em went out on a date and Alice was at Jasper's. We spent our usual night of watching Jeopardy! and eating Thai takeout from a few blocks over. It was nice, and I was definitely missing it amidst our busy schedules.

"You kinda scared the shit out of me, Edward," I chastise, making sure to keep my voice down. There's no one at the other tables around me, but I'm near the balcony that looks over onto the first floor, and I don't want to disturb the people down there.

"Sorry. I didn't realize you were so absorbed in…" he trails off, glancing at my paper open on my computer screen, "an essay about racism and your music. What are you listening to, anyway?"

He's become more bold in asking questions and teasing me in the weeks that we've spent together, and I'm happy for the change. The weird tension that always surrounded us prior to Halloween was finally gone, and I'm glad we can talk to each other like friends. We spend a bit more time together than casual friends would, though, and I'm happy for that, too. I was serious when I told him that I liked him, even the hard, asshole side of him. In the last few weeks, I've been honored with glimpses at the real him, though, and I'm enjoying it.

The real Edward is kind-hearted, caring, and playful. We're constantly joking around and teasing each other when we're together, and he's smiled more in the last few weeks than I have ever seen before. He's constantly asking to make sure I'm comfortable and for my opinion. He listens when I tell him without interrupting or making me feel slighted or dumb. I've heard stories, too, about his childhood and growing up the way he has. He's a mama's boy, through and through, and I think it's the most endearing thing in the world. He and his dad have a good relationship, too, and he apparently seriously debated becoming a doctor as well, but both his parents encouraged him to follow his dreams in music. And, despite their bickering and teasing, he loves Rosalie like any good big brother, and he even confessed his original apprehension toward Em dating her, even though he'd already known him before they started dating.

Mischievous Edward is still always present though. Those leering looks I had garnered when we first met each other still make an appearance every once in awhile, even though I think he tries to reign them in so he doesn't make them uncomfortable. I reciprocate the looks, though, which he finds amusing. Behind the mirth in his eyes when he catches me ogling him is always a bit of lust, though. There's always an obvious air of sexual tension between us, because we both know we want more of each other than this platonic friendship we're developing. But, we both are aware that we can't just jump into anything. I think it means a lot to both of us that we learn about each other without sex clouding everything.

"Clair de Lune," I admit, flipping to the tab I have open on Pandora. Edward leans closer to me to see the piece, and I can smell the fresh cigarette smoke. We're technically not allowed to smoke on campus, except for in the designated areas posted near the parking lots. I'm sure Edward has a pension for not following those rules, though.

"This is the first Debussy piece I learned to play," he tells me, speaking so close to my ear that I can feel his breath fan against it and my neck. I shiver, and I can tell he notices, because that knowing little smirk is back on his face. I hold back the eye roll that wants to break free.

"What was the first classical piece you learned?" I ask. Edward has told me a little about his music, like how he started piano at four and soon progressed to other instruments, and how his mother was his first piano teacher, but he surpassed her by the fifth grade, so they had to hire someone from the university. He didn't pick up the drums and guitar until he was in middle school, but he learned to play the violin before he finished the third grade. He tried the cello when he got to high school, but it isn't his favorite, so he doesn't play often.

"Für Elise," he says, shrugging, like that's the easiest thing in the world to play. "I think that's just about every pianist's first classical piece."

I just gape. "How old were you?"

He furrows his brow in thought. "Five, I think? Maybe six. I was in kindergarten. I could finally reach all the keys. My hands were too little before that." He's some type of fucking child prodigy, and he just shrugs it off like it's nothing. He should probably be playing for some type of symphony at this point.

I shake my head and huff out a disbelieving laugh. "Jesus, Edward."

"What?"

"Nothing," I assure, still smiling. "What's your favorite to play?"

He grins. "Flight of the Bumblebee."

I stare at him strangely. "What the hell? Don't middle schoolers learn to play that in band?"

"Maybe the modified sheet music, but not the original." He proceeds to pull up a YouTube video of an Asian woman playing at some type of show, and all I can do is stare dumbfounded at how quickly and effortlessly her fingers seem to fly across the keys. They're moving so fast, they just look like blurs, and I can't even really keep track of where her hands are even at on the keys. Then he shows me a video of a little boy, no more than six, playing and I just about lose it in the fucking library.

"Jesus Christ," I chuckle when the video is over. "When did you learn to do that?"

"I think I was eight or nine. So, definitely older than this kid, but Mom was impressed." He beams a goofy grin at me, one I see a lot more often now, especially when we're bickering and talking about how we were as children. It's part of the real Edward that I'm certainly glad I get to see pretty regularly.

I let out a soft laugh, still trying to keep my voice down. I suddenly remember the conversation I had with my photography teacher. I had taken the photos at the swim meet this past weekend, where I was really unsure of what was going on. I have never seen a swim meet before in my life, so I have absolutely no idea how scoring works. All I had to do was show up and take photos and give them to the newspaper. But I haven't told Edward about the other assignments they're giving me.

"Oh, hey. You know how I was telling you about being hired onto the school newspaper to take photos?" I ask, closing my laptop. I'm not getting anymore of my essay written right now, and I'm not really lamenting over that fact. I'll just do it later.

Edward nods. "Yeah, you went to the swim meet. How was that, but the way?"

I shrug. "Cold and wet and way too many half-naked people walking around in forty degree weather. I got cold just looking at them." Our school doesn't have an indoor pool, and I felt so bad for all the swimmers the entire time I was there.

"You can't tell me you didn't enjoy watching all those very fit guys walking around in Speedos and tech suits," he jokes, his tongue ring clicking against the back of his teeth as he smirks.

I shake my head. "I really didn't. None of them had t-" I cut myself off, realizing how mortifying it would be if I admit what I was just about to say. Edward doesn't need to know about my preferences toward the male body-or that my preferences are essentially him. I mean, he obviously knows I'm into him, but he most definitely doesn't need to know that seeing his bare chest that one time at the pool sends me into some sort of horny puddle of mess every time I think about it.

His pierced eyebrow twitches up into a question. "None of them had what? I _know_ they all have abs, so that can't be what you're complaining about."

The blush is working up my face, and I know he can see it when he smirks a little. Damn him. "No, they're bodies are fine. I just...have certain preferences that none of them had." If Alice were here, she'd know right away what I was talking about. I had told her exactly what they were all lacking as soon as I got back from the meet, and she just nodded knowingly.

"And what are your preferences, Bella?" he asks, his voice husky, and he's slid just a little bit closer to me, his body nearly flush with mine. His fingers play with a strand of my hair that's around my shoulders, something I've noticed he does often when he flirts with me. He's trying to get to me, but I'm not going to let him.

I push down my embarrassment at having this conversation with him. I'm hoping my bluntness knocks of his cocky flirting. I like to see that certain version of his smirk fall from his face. I've done it a few times, and I'm hoping this will add another time to that list.

I swallow as I turn to look at him, dispelling the last of my nerves about being so close to him and admitting a very large part of my attraction to him.

"I like guys with nice bodies and tattoos. And piercings. None of the swim guys fit that criteria." I just shrug and open my laptop back up, like I'm not affected by how close he is or that I basically just told him that _he_ is who I'm referring to. I just turn back to the tab with my essay, and read over the last few sentences I wrote, trying to reorient myself to what I've been saying.

Edward clears his throat beside me. "Well, alright then," he says after a moment, and I purse my lips together to prevent the smirk from pulling at my lips. "I'm gonna head to the shop. Would you like to come with me or should I leave you to your essay?"

I turn and smile at him. "Nah, I'll come with you. I can think of more paragraphs to bullshit while I'm working." I close my laptop, disconnect my earbuds, stuff my computer, papers, and notebooks back into my backpack and stand from the booth with Edward.

He stands back and motions for me to go ahead of him, so I sling my bag onto my shoulder and walk past him, toward the staircase at the other end of the floor. Before I can make it very far, though, I feel his hand wrap around my wrist and stop me. He pulls me gently so that we're face to face, our chest nearly touching.

"Bella?"

"Yeah?" I breathe, overwhelmed by his proximity and his scent. And the fact that he's just used my actual name. He's taken to using it more while we're alone together, but both him and Emmett still call me JB when we're all together, which is annoying, but I just let it slide. Em does it to bug the shit out of me, and Edward does it to maintain normalcy within the group. I just take it in strides.

Edward hesitates for a moment, just looking down at me. His lips are slightly pursed, and I can hear the faint sound of his tongue ring clicking against the backs of his teeth, something he does when he's in thought. His eyes are trained somewhere on my forehead, but it's like he's looking through me more than actually at me. Finally he blinks, and his eyes drift down to meet my own.

He shakes his head. "Nevermind. Let's go."

I give him a strange look, though, it's too his back, since he's now walking a few strides in front of me. "Okay?" I'll get it out of him some other time, I guess.

}ACH{

 _November 22, 2015_

 _2:23 pm_

"Esme, do you need help with anything?" I ask as I return back to the kitchen after dropping off my bag into the guest room I've claimed as my own. The Cullens seem to have acknowledged it too, since as soon as we walk into the house, both Esme and Carlisle have been calling them 'your guys's rooms' to Alice and me. From what Rose has said, I wouldn't be surprised if those rooms are decorated to our tastes the next time we come to visit.

"Oh, no, honey. Thank you, though. I'm just waiting for everything to come out of the oven," she smiles. Esme has a set of double ovens that I definitely want in my own kitchen one day. They're easily handling all the dishes I know she's preparing for the holiday in one go. This large of a dinner would have taken me two days to cook in my oven back in Forks. Esme is doing it in a matter of hours.

"Are you sure?" I ask.

She comes over and pats my hand that's resting on the counter. "I'm sure, Bella. The rest of them are downstairs with the fire going. Go join them. Carlisle's and my parents will be here soon. Just relax until dinner is ready."

I nod and head down the flight of stairs into the living room. The big fireplace against the far wall is blazing. The temperature has dropped unexpectedly in Boston in the last few days, so the fire is necessary, especially in this large open room. It's only got up into the low forties the last few days, and today isn't going much differently. There's dark clouds outside, and there's a threat of rain, but the possibility of snow is low.

All four of them are huddled around the fire, the furniture in the room reoriented to face the fireplace. Rose and Emmett are in one chair, Rose in Em's lap, cuddled up under a blanket. Alice is in the other chair, foregoing the blanket, instead huddled in her oversized sweater and fuzzy socks. She's giggling at something Emmett has just said, which has earned him a thump to the shoulder from Rose. Edward is chuckling as well, sitting in the loveseat with what looks like a handmade crocheted grey blanket tucked in around his legs. He looks so relaxed and cozy in front of the fire with our friends and his family, making me want to cuddle up next to him. I'll have to sit next to him on the loveseat, since it's the only space left, but I'll have to keep a decent distance between us.

My socked feet don't make any sound on the hardwood floor, but Alice looks up at me just as I make it to the landing. She smiles and waves me over, causing the rest of them to look over their shoulders.  
"JB, come join the party. Get cozy. The rest of this house is too fucking cold. We're cuddling for warmth like penguins," Em says, giving me a cheesy grin.

"Alice and Edward aren't cuddling for warmth. That just seems to be you and Rose," I tell him, making my way over to them. I take my seat next to Edward and give him a small smile. The heat from the fire is welcoming and making me a little drowsy.

"That's because Alice is peppy enough to keep herself warm," Em says, like it's very obvious.

Alice beams at him.

"So what's Edward's excuse?" I wonder.

"Edward's just not a cuddler," Rose inputs.

"Oh, really?" I wonder aloud. _He seemed like a cuddler to me when I woke up with him wrapped around me the morning after Halloween._

"Just because I don't want to cuddle any of you doesn't mean I'm not a cuddler," Edward argues. That's what I thought.

Everyone quiets down for a few moments, in which I just stare at the fire and reflect on all that I have to do still before the end of the semester. The paper I wrote for English is supposed to be graded by the time we get back from our long weekend, and both Rose and I are anxious to get our scores back. This is our last major grade in the class, aside from the reflective essay due at the end of the semester as our final. On top of writing another essay, I have my final portfolio due in photography, which I haven't even begun to put together or come up with ideas. There's also my damn math final, which I'm not looking forward to, at all. Math is easy; I just don't feel like being forced to take a two hour long math test on my last day in Boston before I head back to Forks for the break.

Amidst my scowling at all the things I have to do in the three weeks before the end of the semester, I suddenly feel a stare penetrating the left side of my face. Rose and Emmett are busy laughing at something on Emmett's phone and Alice is scrolling through her own phone on my right, so that only leaves Edward. I shiver at the knowledge that he's just looking at me, even though I can't see the expression on his face. I know for sure that he's not scowling, as he so often used to do, but other than that, I can't deduce what look he's giving me without looking over at him. While everyone else, aside from maybe Edward's parents, knows that Edward and I are no longer hostile toward each other and are building a tentative relationship, we've never made it very obvious in public or around anyone else.

So, when Edward grabs the edge of the blanket that's been tucked under his leg and extends it over my lap and drapes it over my feet I'm a little shocked. I finally glance over at him, finally, and find him giving me the tiniest of smirks. I raise my eyebrow at him and look between him and the blanket now on both of our laps, and back to him pointedly.

He leans into me and puts his mouth to my ear. "You shivered. I figured you were cold." I'd think he was just being kind, but when he pulls back, the look on his face tells me he knows exactly why I was shivering. We're sitting in front of a blazing fire; I'm obviously not cold. The feeling of his gaze on me is almost tangible, like it's his skin against mine. The quirk of his pierced brow is like a challenge, daring me to tell him I'm not cold.

I'm not about to do that in the same room as our friends, so I just nod and say, "Thank you."

His smirk is full blown now, and when I look away from him, I see that Rose and Alice have taken notice to our little exchange, glancing between me and each other with wicked little smiles on their faces, like they know something that I don't.

I don't get a chance to make a remark about their silent exchange, because the doorbell rings three times in succession, like an annoying kid trying to ding-dong ditch. I look up the stairs curiously, seeing how Esme's going to deal with this. But, when the door is opened a moment later, there is a flurry of activity and voices that I've never heard before. When I look back at Edward and Rose questioningly, they have matching grins on their faces, making them look way too much like each other in that moment.

"What is that?" Alice asks. There's a squeal then, and Alice startles. "Jesus, I thought I was excitable and loud."

"That would be our Nana Charlotte," Rose says.

There's a booming laugh a split second later.

"And that would be our grandfather, Peter," Edward adds.

"Pete's here? Yes!" Emmett fist pumps, nearly knocking Rose off his lap.

"Emmett and Pops have a weird bromace," Rose explains, rolling her eyes. "Edward was his favorite grandson until I brought Em around."

"Why do Em and your grandfather have a bromance?" Alice asks, scrunching her nose up. The thought of a twenty-something and an elderly man having a friendship seems weird to her, and I suddenly remember that she doesn't have any grandparents of her own.

"And why was Edward kicked off his pedestal?" I ask, snickering at the annoyed look Edward shoots me.

"You'll see," is all Rose says.

Just then, there's a set of heavy boots and the clatters of heels walking down the flight of stairs that leads into the living room. Those stylish grey booties and black Doc Martens are the first thing I see, followed by much too stylish clothing for a set of assumingly sixty-somethings. The rest of their bodies emerge then, and I am all too aware of why Emmett would have such a good relationship with this man.

The person that I first assumed was elderly is anything but. I mean, yeah, he's obviously in his early sixties, from the complete white of his hair and the wrinkles in the normal places on his face, but, aside from that, I'd have no idea that this man was a grandfather if I just glanced at him in the streets.

Peter is the hottest grandfather I have ever had the privilege of laying my eyes on, and I see the origin of the Cullen children's good genes. Peter is about six-foot-three, with sparkling blue eyes, perfectly styled white hair that I'm pretty sure was platinum blond at some point in his life. He's got a lean build and wide shoulders, accented by the black button down that's pulling across his chest much like Edward's clothes pull across his. He's also got a very impressive beard that I'm jealous of, and I'm a woman. The most shocking-but also something that I should have seen coming-thing about Peter is the tattoos I can see peeking out behind the collar and sleeves of his shirt and on his neck. He is the epitome of a 'Cool Grandpa'.

Nana Charlotte is just as stylish and good looking as her husband. She's tall, as well, several inches taller than me. Her hair is light brown, with just the right amount of grey in it to make her look sophisticated. Her features are strikingly similar to Rosalie's, with her button nose and full pink lips. She's still slim and looks like she keeps in shape, if the way her sweater dress hugs her figure is any indication. She doesn't seem to have the same affinity for tattoos as her husband, though.

I don't know what I was expecting Rose and Edward's grandparents to look like, but it is definitely not this. Though, I should have expected such great looking people given the way the rest of the this family looks.

"Pete!" Em shouts, actually pushing Rosalie off his lap this time. She gives him an annoyed look, but it softens into a smile as Em gets up and hugs her grandfather.

Peter greets Emmett just as enthusiastically, and in a matter of seconds, they're absorbed in some conversation I can't even keep up with, so I tune them out. Charlotte ignores them as well, and steps forward to hug Rose.

"Oh, honey, it's good to see you again. I haven't seen you since your mother's birthday," she says, and her voice sounds quite a bit like Rosalie's, too. Seeing them so close together is a little bit of a trip.

"It's good to see you, too, Nana," Rose says. "I'm sorry. I'd visit more, but school's been a little crazy."  
Charlotte waves her hand to brush away the words. "Girly, I know what it's like. Just drop by whenever you get a chance."

"Nana and Pops live about twenty minutes from the school," Edward explains to me. "We try to visit, but we kinda lose track of things while we're at school."

"Eddie, stand up and hug me," Charlotte demands. I try to contain my giggle at the admonishment, but Charlotte hears me and winks at me over Edward's shoulder when they hug.

"And who are these beautiful young ladies?" she asks, lightly shoving Edward away. He chuckles and shakes his head at his grandmother.

"Nana, these are my friends, Bella Swan and Alice Brandon. They're from Washington state," Rose introduces.

"Come here, girls. I'm a hugger," Charlotte says. Alice and I chuckle and get up to hug Charlotte at the same time. "I'm glad Rosie has some girls in her life, now. I mean, Emmett is great, but I need more estrogen when I visit."

Rose rolls her eyes. "Why does everyone think I'm incapable of having female friends?"

"Because all the friends you had all through school were boys," Edward interjects.

"I think that's because they were the only people Rose could get to do anything she wanted," Peter suddenly says, coming into our little circle of conversation with Emmett. They seem to have been able to tear each other away from their titillating discussion of whatever it is they were talking about.

Rose shrugs. "I can't help if they were so struck by my good looks that they followed me around like little puppies. I just took advantage of it."

"Oh, what it would be like to be Rosalie Cullen," I joke, snickering at her.

"Don't give me that crap. You had the hottest boy in Forks wrapped around your finger for two years," Alice argues, giving me the stink eye.

I really don't have a rebuttal for that, so I just roll my eyes. Alice snickers like she's saying, "I told you so," but I just ignore her.

"So, since my husband has been all over his favorite grandson, I'll introduce you," Charlotte jokes. "Peter, these are Rose's friends, Bella Swan and Alice Brandon."

Alice is closer, so he warmly shakes her hand and then moves to me. "Bella's name is fitting, but you're both beautiful." I can feel the heat rise in my face at his compliment while Alice thanks him. "Edward, please tell me you're dating one of them. I hardly know them, and they're both already fifty times better than what's-her-face."

I can't help the burst of laughter at their grandfather's obvious dislike of Irina. It makes me feel better for having never liked her.

"Alice has a boyfriend, Pete," Em quickly says, his eyes gleaming with mirth as he looks right at me. I give him a glare, knowing what he's trying to do. I don't know how much Rose tells Em, but he knows there's an almost-something going on with Edward and me. He's trying to make the situation awkward, but I'm determined to not let him.

"What about beautiful Bella?" Peter asks, looking at Edward imploringly. My blush heats as he grins at me and winks. "Tell me you're dating her, Edward."

"Pops!" Edward protests at the same time Carlisle's voice rings out, "Dad!" I want to melt through the floor or turn invisible or something. Em is outright laughing, Alice is giggling, and Rose is being a good friend and trying to hold her chuckles in, but it's a futile effort. I'm suddenly wishing I stayed in my dorm for the holiday.

"What? Bella is very pretty, and she's got to be fantastic if Rosie is friends with her. She's the type of girl Edward should be with," Pete argues with a shrug, like I"m not still standing right here.

Peter watches his son approach, and I've never been more grateful for Carlisle's appearance into a room. I take the opportunity to slide my way out of the gathering of people and toward the stairs. I can hear Carlisle and Peter talking behind me and don't hesitate to go up to the kitchen, hoping Esme is in there so I can insist that I help her with something.

Unfortunately, Esme is not there. This is just as well, though. I go to sit at the kitchen table and check my emails on my phone just for something to do. I can still hear voices downstairs, and I'm hoping I'm not the topic of conversation anymore. It's not that the topic of conversation was making me uncomfortable, because that's what Edward and I are working toward anyway, right? I just don't like being talked about like I'm not even there with no one just asking me what I think or how I feel. It just makes me feel a bit awkward.

Just like last week in the library, Edward startles me when he slips into the chair next to me. I have my nose so deep in my phone, I don't even hear anyone coming up the stairs.

"Hey, you alright?" he asks. His teeth pull gently at the piercing in his lip, and I want it to be my teeth doing the tugging instead.

I give him a small smile. "Yeah, I'm good. Just don't really like being talked about like I'm not there. I came up here to help your mother, but she's MIA."

"I'm sorry about my grandfather. He's a little exuberant and doesn't have the best filter." He cringes, like he's remembering past experiences where Peter's verbal filter failed. I'm sure there are many, given my short experience with the man.

"No, it's fine. It wasn't the subject that was bothering me," I assure him.

He nods. "Okay." He pauses and there's a comfortable silence that lays over us as I continue to scroll through my emails. "Hey," he finally says, "wanna go out to the meadow tonight?"

I know he's talking about the beautiful little clearing he took me to that one night. I wonder what it's going to look like this far into autumn.

I smile. "Yeah, absolutely."

"You brought your camera, right?" he asks.

"Of course."

"Good. Meet me at the back door at midnight."

* * *

 **So, yeah. I kind of don't like this chapter. I couldn't get into it, but I did the best that I could. Like I said, things will start to pick up with the next chapter, so just hold tight. I'm hoping to have that up a lot quicker than this one.**

 ****Also! Big announcement!** I am writing a new story that I plan on completely finishing before I publish it. I am looking for a beta, since I think it will help along my writing process. I'd get the chapters to you now, so I can make necessary changes before I finish the entire story. So, if you're interested in being a beta, please send me a message. I'm hoping to get someone pretty soon! Thank you in advance!**

 **Until next time, lovelies!**


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